Americans jailed in Afghan "private prison" trial

[seemslikeadream]

Wed 15 September, 2004 13:46

By David Brunnstrom

KABUL (Reuters) - Three Americans have been sentenced to up to 10 years in jail after being found guilty by an Afghan court on charges including torture, running a private prison and illegal detention.

Jonathan "Jack" Idema, a former U.S. Green Beret, was arrested in July along with another ex-serviceman, Brent Bennett, and documentary film-maker Edward Caraballo.

They had denied the charges and insisted they were in Afghanistan with U.S. and Afghan government sanction to help track down al Qaeda and Taliban extremists.

"I apologise that we tried to save these people," Idema told reporters immediately after the verdict.

"We should have let the Taliban murder every one of them," he said bitterly.

more
http://www.reuters.co.uk/newsPackageArticle.jhtml?type=worldNews&storyID=583955§ion=news


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All working links here
Threads on Idema
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=125&topic_id=9558&mesg_id=18255&page=

[zbdent]

1. I had to laugh about the "fairness" problem the defense had

about how the defendents weren't treated fairly in the trial.

Well, maybe you should have endorsed international standards. You want to hold kangaroo courts, don't be surprised if you're bitten on the ass with a kangaroo court (when it turns on you).

[seemslikeadream]

2. Idema, how's having friends like Rumsfeld and Cambone

workin' out for ya?

[noonwitch]

4. I knew some people named Idema, I wonder where he's from

The Idemas were once the main stockholders in Steelcase. My dad was in Rotary with John Idema, who was a retired vice president of the company. I wonder if this guy is a son or grandson?

[sattahipdeep]

3. Direction of the President

Posted: 15 September 2004

Jonathan Idema and Brent Bennett received 10-year terms while co-defendant
Edward Carabello was handed an eight-year term by the special tribunal in
Kabul which has been hearing the case since mid-August.

Before the verdict, lawyers for the US defendants said they would appeal.

International troops deployed in Afghanistan have confirmed that they assisted
Idema on three separate raids, presuming him to be a member of the US special
forces.

http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/afp_world/view/106814/1/.html


Neither the number of employees nor the size of the Agency's budget
can be publicly disclosed. Both the Congress and the Executive Branch
oversee the Central Intelligence Agency's activities. The CIA is not a
policy-making organization; it advises policymakers on matters of
foreign intelligence, and it conducts covert actions only at the direction
of the President.

http://www.pbs.org/now/politics/intellservices.html

Or friends like Krongard :shrug: