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9/11 Executions Could Take Place in Gitmo
Military rules changed allowing executions far from federal courts
By Rob Quinn
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Posted Feb 13, 08 7:54 AM CST
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(Newser)
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Six 9/11 suspects detained at Gitmo could be executed at the controversial prison compound if found guilty, legal experts say. Military regulations used to require that executions take place at Fort Leavenworth in Kansas, but that rule was amended two years ago to allow prisoners to be executed in "other places." The creation of a Guantanamo Bay execution chamber would keep the men largely out of the reach of US courts, experts believe.
"I think that's the administration's idea, to use Guantanamo as a base to not be under the umbrella of the federal district courts," said a former Navy attorney. US officials have announced that they will seek the death penalty against the suspects. Any executions would be certain to cause international outrage, although the AP reports that US diplomats have been instructed to remind critics that Nazi war criminals were executed after the Nuremberg trials.