OBL in the dock

[Melvin Loh]

Anybody read Geoffrey Robertson QC's CRIMES AGAINST HUMANITY 2nd edn (2002) ? There was 1 chapter in the revised edn where he discussed the international legal and human rights options available to try OBL for 9/11 were he ever captured, such as by military court-martial, American civilian jury trial, UN-authorised war crimes tribunal a la the Hague WCT, or specially-constitued military tribunal along the lines of the model to prosecute Guantanamo Bay detainees. What Robertson emphasised is that whatever method is adopted, the civilised world must thru the trial process totally take apart the myth of OBL and show him for the callopus murderer he is, just as the Nazis were demythologised re their crimes by Nuremberg in WWII's aftermath, in order to fully deter other potential terrorists in future and prevent the future occurrence of crimes of such a magnitude. Any thoughts ?

BTW, I hope I haven't posted on this AH issue before- chew me out if I have.

[fhaessig]

How can crime against Humanity apply?

9/11 was a definitely, a crime, but I think it is legally defined as mass murder if you keep on the civil side ( or a war crime if you consider it part of war against terrorism. I don't, as I refuse to dignify terrorism that way ). AFAIK, there's no way the legal definition of crime against humanity can apply there. Can someone explain to me, if I'm wrong?

[Raymann]

Come one people, when we catch bin Laden,

1. Find rope
2. Find tree
3. Put rope around neck
4. Throw rope around branch
5. Pull on rope
6. Justice for all!

[Derek Jackson]

Come one people, when we catch bin Laden,

1. Find rope
2. Find tree
3. Put rope around neck
4. Throw rope around branch
5. Pull on rope
6. Justice for all!

I think that could happen if this particular monster were captured by a undiscplined group. However the advantage of conviction at a credible trial to the West would be huge.

[Melvin Loh]

fhaessing, the int'l law definition of crimes against humanity, as indicated after the Nuremberg trials and subsequently codified in other int'l legal documents such as the Statutes of both Int'l Criminal Tribunals and the Int'l Criminal Court, entails gross, systematic violations of human rights which include but are not limited to such acts on a mass scale as murder, unlawful imprisonment, torture and inhumane treatment, and rape. In this context, 9/11 counts as such a crime against humanity according to Robertson.