Iraqi Court Kicks Loose AP Photog Held by U.S.; Right-Wing Heads Explode
April 10, 2008Human Rights
Right wing bloggers' heads are exploding all over the country:
An Iraqi judicial committee has dismissed terrorism-related allegations against Associated Press photographer Bilal Hussein and ordered him released nearly two years after he was detained by the U.S. military.
Hussein, 36, remained in custody at Camp Cropper, a U.S. detention facility near Baghdad's airport.
A decision by a four-judge panel said Hussein's case falls under a new amnesty law. It ordered Iraqi courts to "cease legal proceedings" and ruled that Hussein should be "immediately" released unless other accusations are pending.
The ruling is dated Monday but AP's lawyers were not able to thoroughly review it until Wednesday. It was unclear, however, whether Hussein would still face further obstacles to release.The bad news is that the US is probably going to invoke a Yoo Hoo: where the rule of law only applies when the government, at its discretion, believes it won't cause a security risk:
