Miranda Rights Apply to Terrorists, says Obama

From OneNewsNow
By Chad Groening

An author and expert on Islam is concerned that President Obama's decision to suspend military tribunals being conducted at the Guantanamo Bay detention facility could lead to a policy where U.S. soldiers might have to read captured enemy combatants their Miranda rights on the battlefield.

Recently a military judge agreed to Barack Obama's request to suspend the Guantanamo war crimes trial of Omar Khadr, who is accused of killing an American soldier with a grenade in Afghanistan in 2002. It is the first in a series of delays sought by Obama as his administration reviews the legal system for prosecuting alleged terrorists.

Robert Spencer is the director of Jihad Watch, a project of the David Horowitz Freedom Center. He fears the Obama administration could adopt a policy that could seriously hinder soldiers on the battlefield.

"It creates an absurd situation because then we're facing the prospect of people being arrested on the battlefield and read their Miranda rights. And then people who are fighting wars -- soldiers -- will have to decide whether or not they can take action against the enemy or whether they will have to let them go because they won't be able to prove their case against him in a civilian court," he explains. "So it creates a ridiculous situation that will ultimately lead to military defeat."

Spencer points out that there is a great deal of evidence that Khadr is not only guilty of jihadist activities, but that his family also has been deeply involved with Osama Bin Laden and al-Qaida for years. He does not believe the suspect should have access to the U.S. court system.