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Charges Decreased For Guantanamo Translator

HeadlineDec 22, 2003

For the second time in a month, the U.S. military’s case against a Muslim accused of spying at Guantanamo Bay has largely fallen apart. Senior Airman Ahmad al-Halabi who works as a translator for the Guantanamo detainees originally faced 30 charges including the capital crime of “aiding the enemy.” But 13 of the more serious charges have now been dropped. The main charges now deal with improperly transporting classified documents. Al-Halabi’s lawyer said the military attempted to claim almost every document his client had was classified. One document which was classified as “Secret, not to be viewed by non-Americans” was a photograph of al-Halabi’s fiancée who lives in Syria. This comes weeks after the government’s case against another Muslim working at Guantanamo Bay, James Yousef Yee, largely fell apart. Yee, A West Point graduate who worked as a Muslim chaplain, was held for 76 days on suspicion of spying and aiding the enemy. When charges were finally filed in October the charges had little to do with national security. The most serious was taking classified material to his home and wrongfully transporting classified material without the proper security containers or covers. At a recent court hearing Yee’s attorney charged that the government arrested him for transporting classified material although it has yet to rule that the material in question was even classified.

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