US Drops Charges Against Cole Suspect

Obama meets families of victims, including 9/11, tomorrow
By John Johnson,  Newser Staff
Posted Feb 5, 2009 7:42 PM CST
US Drops Charges Against Cole Suspect
This image provided by the U.S. Navy shows damage sustained on the port side of the USS Cole in 2000.   (AP Photo/U.S. Navy)

The US withdrew charges—at least temporarily—against the main suspect in the 2000 USS Cole bombing tonight, ABC News reports. They could be reinstated once the Obama administration works out the logistics of handling the cases of Gitmo detainees. President Obama, meanwhile, will meet face-to-face with families of victims from the Cole attack and 9/11 tomorrow to reassure them of the United States' resolve against terrorists.

The president set up the meetings to assure the families that his administration is not giving a free pass to the Cole suspect, Abd al-Rahim al-Nashiri, or to any terror suspects even though it plans to shut down the Guantanamo Bay prison. Conservative critics, including Dick Cheney, say the US is going soft on terrorists. One 9/11 activist told the Washington Post that "fireworks" could fly at the Obama meeting.
(More President Obama stories.)

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