Omar Khadr: Military Commission Trial of Ex-Child Soldier

          Omar Khadr, a Canadian national, was 15-years old when he was captured and seriously injured in a firefight in Afghanistan on July 27, 2002. The US has accused Khadr of throwing the grenade that killed US Army Sgt. 1st Class Christopher Speer and injured two others. He is charged with murder and attempted murder in violation of the laws of war, conspiracy to commit terrorism, providing material support for terrorism, and spying. His trial by military commission began in August 2010 but was recessed after one day due to defense counsel's illness. The trial was scheduled to resume on October 18. On October 14, the military judge issued an order postponing the trial until October 25 and news reports indicated that the two sides are negotiating a plea deal.

Omar Khadr before being imprisoned at Guantanamo in 2002 at the age of 15, left, and photographed in 2009, right.

Due to the way Omar Khadr was treated and deprived of rights others between the same age were given, the court in my opinion should be more flexible in terms of what is to happen to him. Although he is 24 now, at the time of the alleged crime he was a minor (under the age of 18) which in theory should result in him being treated as one. The US Supreme Court and international human rights bodies have repeatedly recognized that minors differ intellectually and emotionally from adults and therefore need to be judged and treated differently, because Omar Khadr was only 15 at the time he is considered a minor. The punishment he obtains should be somewhere along the lines of rehabilitation as his mind was and still may be corrupt due to everything that has happened since the incident. In my opinion Omar Khadr has gone through more than enough and instead of being punished I do think he should receive some recognition and perhaps an apology due to all he has gone through. Omar Khadr should not have to deal with all this after what he has gone through as I think he has received more than his faire share of punishment. The only thing I personally would advise is some psychological help as it is clearly needed due to all the physical and mental pain he has encountered in the past years.

Story found on: http://www.hrw.org/

Author: HUMAN RIGHTS WATCH

Link to story: http://www.hrw.org/en/news/2010/10/15/qa-omar-khadr-trial