Open Left: HLF Trial, Obama in Cairo

Holy Land Foundation Sentences A Big "Wrong Way" Sign For US "War On Terror" by: Paul Rosenberg Sun Jun 07, 2009 at 09:00

I was working on this diary last Sunday when news came of Dr. Tiller's murder, and I set it aside. After Obama's Cairo speech, I believe it has renewed urgency. IMHO, the prosecution of this case cannot be squared with the spirit of that speech On May 27, five defendants associated the now-defunct Holy Land Foundation--once the largest Muslim charitable foundation in the US--were given sentences totaling 180 years in prison. The first trial ended in a mis-trial, and one of the defendants was almost acquitted on all counts. Although billed as a terrorism trial, there actually were no such charges. The Holy Land Foundation supported charitable work in the Occupied Territories, and they were charged with giving money to Hamas, which has its own network of charitable organizations. At the sentencing hearing, one of the US attorneys told the judge it was "a no brainer" to enahnce the sentences for furthering terrorist efforts--effectively seeking to use charges that they had never proven in court. Excerpts from coverage by Texas Lawyer, and an interview with defendants' family and lawyers on Democracy Now on the flip, along with a discussion why the trial and sentencing are emblematic of the deeply wrong-heaeded nature of our so-called "war on terror." [To read entire article, click here.]

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