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November 21, 2008 4:07:10 AM CST

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Gitmo Charges Against 2 Are Dismissed

Posted Jun 5, 07 9:01 AM CDT in US 

(Newser) – The system of military tribunals for Guantanamo detainees was thrown into chaos yesterday when military judges separately struck down charges against two detainees. The rulings were both on technicalities: the detainees, one 15 years old when captured 5 years ago, were designated "enemy combatants" and not "unlawful enemy combatants" as the law requires.

Military lawyers said the ruling revealed a flaw that would affect every other potential Gitmo case, the New York Times reports. International law defines the latter as combatants who, for example, conceal their weapons and don't wear uniforms. The government will have to either appeal or reclassify the detainees.

Source New York Times

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A Guantanamo detainee, center, is escorted by U.S. military personnel on the grounds of the detention facility at Guantanamo Bay US Naval Base, Cuba, in this May 15, 2007, file photo reviewed by U.S....   (Associated Press)
FILE ** The sun rises over the razor-wired detention compound at Camp Delta, Guantanamo Bay U.S. Naval Base, Cuba, Thursday, in this Dec. 8, 2006, file photo. Lawyers for Guantanamo detainee Jamil el-Banna...   (Associated Press)
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