The current defense team confronted a game-changing “strategic shock” in its first 8 months in office. The Obama team would be well-advised to expect the same.

Defense-relevant strategic shocks jolt convention to such an extent that they force sudden, unanticipated change in the Department of Defense’s (DoD) perceptions about threat, vulnerability, and strategic response. Their unanticipated onset forces the entire defense enterprise to reorient and restructure institutions, employ capabilities in unexpected ways, and confront challenges that are fundamentally different than those routinely considered in defense calculations.

The likeliest and most dangerous future shocks will be unconventional. They will not emerge from thunderbolt advances in an opponent’s military capabilities. Rather, they will manifest themselves in ways far outside established defense convention. Most will be nonmilitary in origin and character, and not, by definition, defense-specific events conducive to the conventional employment of the DoD enterprise.

They will rise from an analytical no man’s land separating well-considered, stock and trade defense contingencies and pure defense speculation. Their origin is most likely to be in irregular, catastrophic, and hybrid threats of “purpose” (emerging from hostile design) or threats of “context” (emerging in the absence of hostile purpose or design). Of the two, the latter is both the least understood and the most dangerous.

Thoughtful evaluation of defense-relevant strategic shocks and their deliberate integration into DoD strategy and planning is a key check against excessive convention. Further, it underwrites DoD relevance and resilience. Prior anticipation of September 11, 2001 (9/11) or the Iraq insurgency, for example, might have limited the scope and impact of the shock. In both instances, wrenching periods of post-event self-examination did help solve our current or last problem. They may not have been as effective in solving our next one.

DoD is now doing valuable work on strategic shocks. This work must endure and mature through the upcoming political transition. The next defense team should scan the myriad waypoints and end points along dangerous trend lines, as well as the prospect for sudden, discontinuous breaks in trends altogether to identify the next shock or shocks. Doing so is a prudent hedge against an uncertain and dangerous future.

On December 23, President Bush signed into law a bill that enhances measures to combat human trafficking.

Department of Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff and Immigration and Customs Enforcement Acting Assistant Secretary John Torres were among 16 federal agency and private organizational leaders in the Oval Office who witnessed the signing of H.R. 7311, the William Wilberforce Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act of 2008.

Elyse Smith, daughter of Rep. Chris Smith (R-NJ), also attended the signing event. The bill, which was passed by voice vote in the House and unanimous consent in the Senate on December 10, authorizes appropriations for FY 2008 through 2011 for the Trafficking Victims Protection Act of 2000.

The legislation enacted today is in keeping with the Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act of 2005 (which amended the Trafficking Victims Protection Act of 2000) to direct the United States Agency for International Development, the Department of State, and the Department of Defense to incorporate anti-trafficking and protection measures for vulnerable populations, particularly women and children, into their post-conflict and humanitarian emergency assistance and program activities.

Prior to the signing, White House Deputy Press Secretary Tony Fratto, said that the bill "has been a priority issue for the administration in preventing the trafficking of persons around the world. So this is a piece of legislation we're very proud to sign."

The trafficking bill signed today was named after English abolitionist William Wilberforce, who led the Parliamentary movement against the British slave trade in the early 19th century.

Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), the largest investigative agency in the Department of Homeland Security, has responsibility for enforcing laws related to human smuggling and trafficking. As a result, ICE plays a leading role in The Human Smuggling and Trafficking Center (HSTC), the federal government's primary tool in the fight against human smuggling and trafficking.

The HSTC was formally established under Section 7202 of the Intelligence Reform Act and Terrorism Prevention Act of 2004. The secretary of state, the secretary of homeland security, the attorney general and members of the national intelligence community jointly oversee the HSTC through a high-level interagency steering group. 

A major member of an Afghan Taliban cell was sentenced today in US District Court for the District of Columbia to two terms of life in prison on drug and narco-terrorism charges, Acting Assistant Attorney General Matthew Friedrich of the Criminal Division announced in a statement submitted to the 14,000-member National Association of Chiefs of Police.

Khan Mohammed, 38, was ordered by U.S. District Judge Colleen Kollar-Kotelly to serve the two life sentences concurrently as well as 60 months of supervised release, served consecutively, for each of the two counts of conviction following the prison term.

Mohammed was convicted on May 15, 2008, after a seven-day jury trial on one count of distribution of one kilogram or more of heroin knowing and intending that it be imported into the United States and one count of narco-terrorism, or the distribution of a controlled substance (in this case heroin and opium) in order to provide something of pecuniary value to a person or group that has engaged or is engaging in terrorist activity.

The conviction represented the first time a defendant had been convicted in US federal court of narco-terrorism since the statute was enacted in March 2006.

Mohammed, an Afghan national, was arrested on Oct. 29, 2006, near Jalalabad, Nangahar Province, Afghanistan. Mohammed waived extradition and was brought from Afghanistan to the United States in November 2007.

"A violent jihadist and narcotics trafficker, Khan Mohammed sought to kill U.S. soldiers in Afghanistan using rockets," said Acting Assistant Attorney General of the Criminal Division Matthew Friedrich. "Today's life sentences match the gravity of the crimes for which he was convicted."

"The conclusion of Khan Mohammed's prosecution demonstrates DEA's ability and determination to go to the far corners of the world to bring to justice narco-terrorists who seek to harm Americans," said DEA Acting Administrator Michele M. Leonhart.

"Today's strong sentence in this groundbreaking case is the result that can be expected by those who support terrorism by trafficking in narcotics," she said.

The evidence at trial established the following:

The investigation began in August 2006 when a concerned Afghan farmer (testifying under the pseudonym "Jaweed") approached Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) agents through local Afghan law enforcement. He provided them with information that the Taliban in Peshawar, Pakistan, had attempted to recruit him to conduct a rocket attack on the Jalalabad Airfield, a facility used jointly by U.S. and NATO forces in Nangarhar Province, Afghanistan. The Taliban identified their local operations coordinator as Khan Mohammed, who was then a village elder in the Chaprahar District of Nangarhar Province, and with whom Jaweed was familiar.

Jaweed, agreeing to wear a recording device, met with Mohammed, who discussed prior attacks he had committed on government vehicles and facilities, confirmed that he was aware of the plan to attack the airfield, and discussed with Jaweed acquiring rockets and other munitions to conduct attacks on Americans, other Westerners and those Afghans who collaborated with them, stating "[t]he Americans are infidels and Jihad is allowed against them. If we have to fire [the missiles] toward the airport, we will do it and if not the airport, wherever they are stationed we will fire at their base too. I mean we have to use the mines too. God willing, we and you will keep doing our Jihad." Frequently during later conversations, additional references were made by Mohammed concerning the need to obtain rockets, meetings planned with other Taliban members, and the need to eliminate "infidels," a term Mohammed used to identify Americans, British, and other coalition forces, as well as Afghan citizens who assisted them. Evidence introduced at trial also proved that Mohammed previously engaged in similar terrorist rocket attacks against Afghan government targets.

During their initial interviews of Jaweed, the DEA agents were told that Mohammed had previously been involved in opium and heroin trafficking. This was later confirmed by Mohammed during several recorded conversations. Over this series of recorded conversations, Mohammed agreed to act as a broker for the purchase of opium, selecting the opium seller and negotiating on Jaweed's behalf.

In mid-September 2006, Mohammed accompanied Jaweed to an opium dealer's house, where, on videotape shown at trial, Mohammed was seen inspecting opium, handling negotiations and assisting Jaweed in the purchase of 11 kilograms. On later learning that the opium was intended for conversion into heroin to be imported into the United States, Mohammed replied, "[G]ood, may God turn all the infidels to dead corpses."

After purchasing the opium, Mohammed expressed his willingness to also sell heroin, particularly since it would be going to the United States. As Mohammed stated at various times, "Jihad would be performed since they send it to America," and "[m]ay God eliminate them right now, and we will eliminate them too. Whether it is by opium or by shooting, this is our common goal..." At the request of the DEA, Jaweed approached Mohammed to purchase heroin. On Oct. 18, 2006, Mohammed was seen on videotape shown at trial, in the presence of his four-year-old son, distributing two kilograms of heroin to Jaweed.

According the evidence presented at trial, the Taliban are an ultraconservative, Islamic militia that has continued to mount an insurgency against the Afghan government since it was removed from power in Afghanistan by Coalition forces in late 2001. According to court documents, as early as 1999, when the Taliban controlled much of Afghanistan, the United States recognized that they were facilitators of terrorism. DEA agents testified at trial that the Taliban has taken on a central role in every stage of opium/heroin production and transportation, relying on it as a principal source of funding for its activities. One agent testified that more than 50 percent of DEA cases have a definitive Taliban dimension.

The case was prosecuted by Trial Attorney Matthew Stiglitz, Deputy Chief for Litigation Julius Rothstein and paralegal Arianne Tice from the Criminal Division's Narcotic and Dangerous Drug Section. The investigation was led by the DEA, in close cooperation with Afghan law enforcement.

Source:U.S. Department of Justice

Jim Kouri, CPP is currently fifth vice-president of the National Association of Chiefs of Police and he's a staff writer for the New Media Alliance (thenma.org).  In addition, he's the new editor for the House Conservatives Fund's weblog. Kouri also serves as political advisor for Emmy and Golden Globe winning actor Michael Moriarty. 

He's former chief at a New York City housing project in Washington Heights nicknamed "Crack City" by reporters covering the drug war in the 1980s. In addition, he served as director of public safety at a New Jersey university and director of security for several major organizations.  He's also served on the National Drug Task Force and trained police and security officers throughout the country.   Kouri writes for many police and security magazines including Chief of Police, Police Times, The Narc Officer and others. He's a news writer for TheConservativeVoice.Com and PHXnews.com.  He's also a columnist for AmericanDaily.Com, MensNewsDaily.Com, MichNews.Com, and he's syndicated by AXcessNews.Com.   He's appeared as on-air commentator for over 100 TV and radio news and talk shows including Oprah, McLaughlin Report, CNN Headline News, MTV, Fox News, etc.  His book Assume The Position is available at Amazon.Com. Kouri's own website is located at http://jimkouri.us

The Castorena Family Organization is a large-scale criminal organization with more than 100 key members who oversee cells of 10 to 20 individuals in cities across the United States, according to public court documents filed by the US government in Colorado and in other judicial districts around the country.

Several of the senior leaders of the organization are believed to be based in Mexico, although they enter the US occasionally to oversee the operations of lieutenants of the crime family.

The organization is alleged to be involved in the manufacture and distribution of high-quality counterfeit identity documents, including social security cards, birth certificates, marriage certificates, US and Mexican driver licenses, Matricula Consular ID cards, resident alien cards, work authorization documents, proof of vehicle insurance cards, temporary vehicle registration documents, and utility bills (many states require driver license applicants to show utility bills as proof of residence).

Court documents also indicate that the CFO started out in Los Angeles in the late 1980s, primarily manufacturing and selling counterfeit alien registration and social security cards. The organization soon expanded its counterfeit document operations to other cities across the United States, including New York City, Chicago, Las Vegas, Denver, Atlanta, Albuquerque, and other cities.

Over the past decade, the CFO has been managed by six Castorena-Ibarra siblings: Pedro, Alfonso, Jose, Maria, Francisco Javier, and Raquel. During the last several years, three of these siblings, Pedro, Maria and Francisco Javier, have maintained direct involvement in the counterfeiting operations of the CFO in Denver and elsewhere. In recent years, several of these siblings have been arrested and prosecuted in the United States. Others have fled to Mexico to avoid US prosecution.

The CFO has been the target of federal investigations in Los Angeles, New York, Chicago, Atlanta, Miami, Dallas, San Antonio, Las Vegas, Albuquerque, Denver, Lincoln, NE, and Des Moines, IA. 

For example, Immigration and Customs Enforcement investigations of the CFO in Los Angeles in the late 1990s resulted in the seizure of millions of counterfeit documents with an estimated street value of $20 million.

The documents were linked to more than 400 investigations and seizures in more than 50 cities in 33 states. The American Express Corporation attributed more than $2 million in losses to counterfeit identification documents that were traced to the CFO just in Los Angeles.

In Denver, ICE investigations into the CFO have resulted in the criminal prosecution of more than 50 individuals. Dozens of additional members of the CFO in Denver have been arrested and deported to Mexico, Colombia, and El Salvador. ICE agents in Denver have also been responsible for the seizure of at least 20 computerized laboratories affiliated with the CFO and used to manufacture high-quality counterfeit identity documents. Agents have also seized 21 computers, 21 silk screen printing templates used to produce counterfeit documents, and nine handguns.

Court documents indicate that CFO cells in various US cities are exceptionally well organized. CFO cell leaders typically keep schedules with the names of each counterfeit document vendor and the times they are to report to a designated area to sell fake documents. The local cell leaders also record the number and type of false documents sold by vendors during their shifts, as well the funds collected for each transaction.

The vendors are allowed to keep a portion of the proceeds, with the remainder passed to the local cell leader. Cell leaders, in turn, pass on a portion of the proceeds to the senior leaders of the CFO. Senior CFO leaders charge rentor franchise fee of as much as $15,000 per month for cell leaders to operate in a particular US city. These funds and other proceeds of counterfeit document sales are funneled to Mexico and other locations for those overseeing the CFO.

The organization moves its funds through three primary methods. Often, funds are wire transferred via money transmitter businesses. In other cases, bulk cash and checks are moved through express parcel services. In addition, the organization often employs couriers who physically transport US currency across US borders and between US cities.

Sources: US Department of Justice, Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Department of Homeland Security, Denver, CO Police Department, National Association of Chiefs of Police   

The Departments of Homeland Security (DHS) and Justice (DOJ) launched the Secure Communities program in Bucks and Montgomery counties to better identify and remove criminal aliens from these communities.

This program, administered by DHS's Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), will now check the immigration history of every individual booked into detention facilities in the two counties. Additionally, ICE will be automatically notified when non U.S. citizens are in custody to determine if follow-up action is necessary.

"Secure Communities will create a constant ICE presence at every local jail, allowing us to identify and ultimately remove dangerous incarcerated criminal aliens from our communities," said Executive Director for ICE Secure Communities David Venturella. "Using this technology, we will build upon the remarkable success we have had working with state and local law enforcement and we will modernize the process of identifying criminal aliens in custody."

James F. Cawley, chairman of the Bucks County Board of Commissioners said, "Information sharing is critical to all agencies' public safety efforts, and we're proud to be taking another step forward to do our part here in Bucks County."

Bucks and Montgomery counties are the first sites to join this program in Pennsylvania. Eleven other sites nationwide are benefiting from the additional information and assistance with removing criminal aliens received through Secure Communities. In collaboration with DOJ and other DHS components, ICE is expanding this capability to all state and local law enforcement agencies throughout the nation.

Michelle A. Henry, Bucks County District Attorney said, "This effort is important for Bucks County because it joins together local law enforcement with other federal agencies to achieve the common goal of removing criminal aliens that pose a threat to our communities."

Before Secure Communities, as part of the routine booking process at local jails, an individual's fingerprints were checked against DOJ's FBI database to obtain information about the detainee's criminal history. The new process will simultaneously check the detainee's fingerprints against the full DHS database as well, which holds biometrics based immigration records. If the individual's fingerprints match those of a non U.S. citizen, the new automated process notifies ICE to evaluate the case.

This capability is part of DHS's plan to distribute integration technology that will link local law enforcement agencies to both FBI and DHS biometric databases. DHS's US-VISIT Automated Biometric Identification System (IDENT) holds biometrics based immigration records, and the FBI's Integrated Automated Fingerprint Identification System (IAFIS) contains biometrics based criminal records. DHS and DOJ are working to make IDENT and IAFIS fully interoperable to ensure that federal, state and local decision makers have access to the information they need in a timely manner. Local law enforcement officials are not permitted to take action against immigration violators unless authorized by DHS.

Jim Kouri, CPP is currently fifth vice-president of the National Association of Chiefs of Police and he's a staff writer for the New Media Alliance (thenma.org).  In addition, he's the new editor for the House Conservatives Fund's weblog. Kouri also serves as political advisor for Emmy and Golden Globe winning actor Michael Moriarty. 

He's former chief at a New York City housing project in Washington Heights nicknamed "Crack City" by reporters covering the drug war in the 1980s. In addition, he served as director of public safety at a New Jersey university and director of security for several major organizations.  He's also served on the National Drug Task Force and trained police and security officers throughout the country.   Kouri writes for many police and security magazines including Chief of Police, Police Times, The Narc Officer and others. He's a news writer for TheConservativeVoice.Com and PHXnews.com.  He's also a columnist for AmericanDaily.Com, MensNewsDaily.Com, MichNews.Com, and he's syndicated by AXcessNews.Com.   He's appeared as on-air commentator for over 100 TV and radio news and talk shows including Oprah, McLaughlin Report, CNN Headline News, MTV, Fox News, etc.  His book Assume The Position is available at Amazon.Com. Kouri's own website is located at http://jimkouri.us

William A. "Bill" White, the self-proclaimed Commander of the neo-Nazi group the American National Socialist Workers Party, was indicted by a federal grand jury for threatening five individuals and for attempting to intimidate litigants in a federal housing discrimination lawsuit, the Justice Department announced today.

White, who was also recently indicted in the Northern District of Illinois for soliciting the murder of a former federal juror, was charged with five counts of communicating threats in interstate commerce, one count of communicating an extortionate threat in interstate commerce, and one count of witness intimidation.

According to the indictment, from late 2006 through mid 2008, White targeted individuals with whom he disagreed on either racial issues, or, in one instance, for personal reasons.

The indictment alleges a pattern of communications which resulted in the victims fearing for their personal safety. These alleged communications included late night telephone calls to the victims' homes, during which he would identify himself as the leader of a white supremacist group; emails to the victims in which he would make threatening statements; and posting the victims' names, addresses, phone numbers, and other personal information on neo-Nazi Web sites, sometimes accompanied by language advocating the murder of the targeted victim.

In one instance, White allegedly sought a personal financial benefit from his threats. In another instance, he allegedly sent letters to the homes of individuals involved in a federal housing discrimination suit. These letters allegedly included racial epithets and caused the victims to feel that they may suffer dire consequences for their participation in the lawsuit.

If found guilty of communicating threats in interstate commerce, White faces a maximum punishment of five years in prison for each count of the indictment. If found guilty of communicating extortionate threats in interstate commerce, White faces a maximum punishment of 20 years in prison. If found guilty of witness intimidation, White faces a maximum punishment of ten years in prison. Each of the aforementioned charges also entails a potential fine of up to $250,000.

The case was investigated by Special Agent David Church of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, in conjunction with Assistant U.S. Attorney Tom Bondurant from the U.S. Attorney's Office, and Special Legal Counsel Barry Kowalski and Special Litigation Counsel Paige Fitzgerald from the Civil Rights Division of the U.S. Department of Justice.

Source: U.S. Department of Justice

Yesterday, Attorney General Michael B. Mukasey, speaking after a joint United States and European Union (EU) ministerial meeting, highlighted "Operation Joint Hammer" -- the US component of an ongoing global enforcement operation targeting transnational rings of child pornographers.

The operation already has led to the arrest of more than 60 people in the United States involved in the trade of child pornography; a number that the Attorney General remarked was likely to increase. Thus far, 11 child victims have been identified through Operation Joint Hammer.

"It should come as news to no one that crimes against children have been an area of special focus for the Department of Justice, and an area of great success," said Attorney General Mukasey.

"Through initiatives such as Project Safe Childhood, we have increased prosecutions of those who abuse and exploit children by over 30 percent in the last two years. Through a series of national media campaigns, we have made great strides in making parents and young people aware of the dangers. And most important, through cooperation with other law enforcement agencies such as our partners in the European Union, we have identified -- and in many cases, saved -- hundreds of children depicted in images and videos of sexual abuse," he stated.

Operation Joint Hammer was initiated through evidence developed by European law enforcement and shared with US counterparts by Europol and Interpol. The European portion of this global enforcement effort, "Operation Koala," was launched after the discovery of a handful of people in Europe who were molesting children and producing photographs of that abuse for commercial gain.

Further investigation unveiled a number of online child pornography rings -- some of which hosted dangerous offenders who not only traded child pornography, but who themselves sexually abused children.

In one case, European law enforcement officials discovered that a father was raping his young daughters and offering a photographer across the continent an opportunity to photograph these sexual attacks. Identification of the father led to the discovery of a commercial Web site maintained by the photographer, which he used to sell the images of the sexual abuse of those children along with many other images of other children whose sexual exploitation he commissioned.

Law enforcement has determined that the customers of the Web site were located in nearly 30 countries around the world, including the United States.

Eurojust and Europol brought together law enforcement officers from many of the affected countries, including the United States, to share information about possible customers of the Web site located in their countries and to coordinate enforcement actions against these child pornographers. With close cooperation from European law enforcement, US law enforcement has been able to identify a number of the US-based customers of the Web site.

Further investigation into those targets resulted in the identification of a number of Internet-based trading sites dedicated to the sharing of child pornography. A number of the US targets belonged to more than one site, revealing an interconnected web of underground child pornography trading.

"Operation Joint Hammer illustrates the effectiveness of international cooperation and the speed with which we can move to protect children, identify those who prey on them and bring them to justice," said John P. Torres, Acting Assistant Secretary of Homeland Security for Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). "Those who produce, distribute and buy images of child pornography cause more children to be damaged. As a member of the Virtual Global Taskforce, ICE works globally every day to stop this from happening."

"This case is an extraordinary example of the good and important cooperation between US and EU law enforcement. Together we have made results to the disadvantage of evil child molesters and to the benefit of a large number of innocent victims," said Max-Peter Ratzel, Director of Europol.

"The Internet has connected all of us into one world without oceans and boundaries," said Shawn Henry, FBI Cyber Division Assistant Director. "As a result, cyber crimes present a challenge that can only be effectively confronted with strength and dedication exhibited daily by law enforcement agencies around the world working in close coordination. As today's announcement demonstrates, we are making significant progress. We are proud to be partners in Operation Joint Hammer and I commend the many law enforcement personnel who contributed to its success."

"The Postal Inspection Service is proud to have participated in this multi-agency initiative," said US Postal Inspection Chief Postal Inspector William R. Gilligan. "Through Operation Joint Hammer, those who used the Internet and the US mails to traffic in child pornography were identified; huge amounts of child pornography have been seized; scores of individuals have been arrested, and, most importantly, many children have been rescued from further sexual abuse and exploitation."

To date, US law enforcement, including federal, state and local authorities, have through close cooperation, filed numerous charges, and more are expected as investigations continue. Significantly, a number of the child pornography traders identified through this operation had been sexually abusing children themselves, sometimes producing images of their sexual abuse. Thus far, work by US law enforcement has resulted in the identification of 11 child victims.

Operation Joint Hammer is the result of close coordination between the FBI, DHS Immigration and Customs Enforcement, US Postal Inspection Service and the Department of Justice's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS), along with European law enforcement, including Europol and Eurojust. In addition, numerous US Attorneys' Offices, as well as CEOS trial attorneys, have been handling the prosecution of the targets identified by these numerous investigations.

Source: US Department of Justice http://www.usdoj.gov/

Jim Kouri, CPP is currently fifth vice-president of the National Association of Chiefs of Police and he's a staff writer for the New Media Alliance (thenma.org).  In addition, he's the new editor for the House Conservatives Fund's weblog. Kouri also serves as political advisor for Emmy and Golden Globe winning actor Michael Moriarty. 

He's former chief at a New York City housing project in Washington Heights nicknamed "Crack City" by reporters covering the drug war in the 1980s. In addition, he served as director of public safety at a New Jersey university and director of security for several major organizations.  He's also served on the National Drug Task Force and trained police and security officers throughout the country.   Kouri writes for many police and security magazines including Chief of Police, Police Times, The Narc Officer and others. He's a news writer for TheConservativeVoice.Com and PHXnews.com.  He's also a columnist for AmericanDaily.Com, MensNewsDaily.Com, MichNews.Com, and he's syndicated by AXcessNews.Com.   He's appeared as on-air commentator for over 100 TV and radio news and talk shows including Oprah, McLaughlin Report, CNN Headline News, MTV, Fox News, etc.  His book Assume The Position is available at Amazon.Com. Kouri's own website is located at http://jimkouri.us

Imagine the psychological makeup of these ACLU clowns who support the killing of innocent unborn children, while fretting over the well-being of murderers, bombers and other violent criminals and enemy combatants.

Out of thousands of 9/11 victims' family members, it's amazing that the ACLU believes the rantings of 25 of them would carry much weight with anyone but left-wing nutjobs.

Below is the full text of the ACLU statement:

9/11 FAMILY MEMBERS CHALLENGE LEGITIMACY OF GUANTANAMO MILITARY COMMISSIONS

As family members who lost loved ones on 9/11, we feel compelled to speak out about this week's proceedings at Guantanamo. Recently, the Guantanamo military commissions office announced that victims' family members would be permitted, on a lottery basis, to attend the Guantanamo legal hearings of those accused of planning the 9/11 attacks. The lottery system inherently results in the granting of media attention to the select few who are chosen, and whose views are not necessarily representative of all victims' families. The media coverage of Monday's commission hearings included statements attributed to attending family members that the tribunals provided a fair hearing for these prosecutions and that family members "were struck by the extensive rights accorded the accused men."

While we support everyone's right to their individual opinions about these proceedings, including, of course, other family members who have suffered the devastation we have, we also feel obliged to make clear that many of us do not believe these military commissions to be fair, in accordance with American values, or capable of achieving the justice that 9/11 family members and all Americans deserve.

We believe that the secretive and unconstitutional nature of these proceedings deprive us of the right to know the full truth about what happened on 9/11. These prosecutions have been politically motivated from the start, are designed to ensure quick convictions at the expense of due process and transparency, and are structured to prevent the revelation of abusive interrogations and torture engaged in by the US government. Unfortunately, any verdict borne of these proceedings will lack legitimacy and leave us wondering if true justice has been served. No comfort or closure can come from military commissions that ignore the rule of law and stain America's reputation at home and abroad.

We are strongly encouraged by the incoming administration's promise to end this shameful system, and we are hopeful for a fresh start for these and all other Guantanamo prosecutions in US courts worthy of American justice. It is time for our nation to stop betraying its own values -- and the values of so many who died on 9/11.