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US Military Panel Hears 1st Guantanamo Appeal

   VOA News 26 January 2010

   A panel of military officers in Washington is hearing the first direct
   appeal of a Guantanamo Bay conviction, with Pentagon defense attorneys
   saying al-Qaida propaganda falls under the protection of free speech.
   A  military  jury  at Guantanamo Bay sentenced Yemeni Ali al Bahlul to
   life  in  prison  in  November  2008  for conspiracy, solicitation for
   murder,  and  material  support for terrorism for making a recruitment
   film for al-Qaida fighters.
   The  case  forces  the sensitive issue of whether the war on terrorism
   can justify the censorship of foreign media.
   Defense  attorneys  argue  that  while  the  top al-Qaida propagandist
   embraces  terrorism  and  opposes  democracy,  the U.S. Constitution's
   First  Amendment  forbids  prosecution  of  his  thoughts,  ideas  and
   beliefs.
   Prosecution  attorneys  say  Bahlul's  work  was  not free or innocent
   because it was intended to inspire terrorism.  They say his propaganda
   therefore does not warrant protection under the First Amendment.
   To  date,  military commissions at Guantanamo Bay have convicted three
   detainees.   Australian  David  Hicks  and  Yemeni  Salim Ahmed Hamdan
   finished  their  sentences in their respective home countries and have
   since been released.

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