The White House is considering endorsing a law that would allow the indefinite detention of some terrorist suspects without trial as part of efforts to break a logjam with Congress over President Barack Obama's plans to close the Guantánamo Bay prison, Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) said Feb. 15.

A judge for the US District Court for the District of Columbia ruled Feb. 16 that claims of unlawful treatment and wrongful death brought on behalf of two former Guantánamo Bay detainees are barred by the Military Commissions Act of 2006 (MCA). The two men, Yasser Al-Zahrani and Salah Ali Abdullah Ahmed Al-Salami, were among three detainees who allegedly hanged themselves in their cells in July 2006. The claim was brought against former US defense secretary Donald Rumsfeld and more than 100 military officers and personnel under the Alien Tort Claims Act. The defendants moved to dismiss the suit based on section 7 of the MCA, which removes the ability of federal courts to hear challenges to the treatment of aliens who have been "properly detained" as enemy combatants. Judge Ellen Huvelle found that since the two men had been properly detained, the court lacked jurisdiction to hear the case. (Jurist, Feb. 17)

US Attorney General Eric Holder said in an interview with the New York Times Feb. 14 that he hopes to hold a civilian trial for accused 9-11 conspirator Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, but that a military tribunal must be considered in the wake of mounting public and political pressure. According to the interview, Holder prefers a civilian trial to ensure "swift, sure justice," but has not ruled out the option of a military commission in Guantánamo Bay. When asked who would make the ultimate decision on where the trial will take place, Holder said, "I think that I make the final call, but if the president is not happy with that final call, he has the ability to reverse it." Holder also stated that he hopes the Obama administration will be able to announce a venue for the 9-11 trial within the next three weeks.

The England and Wales Court of Appeal on Feb. 10 ruled that the government of the United Kingdom must disclose the seven previously withheld paragraphs outlining the apparent torture of former Guantánamo Bay detainee Binyam Mohamed. Ruling in an appeal of a December High Court decision, the court found that "publication of the redacted paragraphs would not reveal information which would be of interest to a terrorist or criminal or provide any potential material of value to a terrorist or a criminal." The court rejected Foreign Secretary David Miliband's claims—backed by the US government—that disclosure of a seven-paragraph summary of classified CIA information would threaten intelligence cooperation between London and Washington, and therefore endanger Britain's national security.

This week the Barack Obama administration's Defense Department released its first Quadrennial Defense Review (QDR), a congressionally mandated planning and strategy document that every four years provides a framework for the military's structure and budgets. The 2010 QDR abandons the Bush administration's "Long War" doctrine. Significantly, the report states that the US will no longer prepare to fight two major wars at the same.

A jury in the US District Court for the Southern District of New York Feb. 3 convicted Aafia Siddiqui, a Pakistani woman with alleged ties to al-Qaeda, on charges of attempting to murder US personnel at the Afghan facility where she was being held. Prosecutors claimed that while in US custody in Afghanistan, Siddiqui lunged for and grabbed an unsecured M-4 rifle and opened fire on her captors. US personnel returned fire, injuring Siddiqui—who denies both handling the weapon and attacking the personnel. In addition to two counts of attempted murder, the jury found Siddiqui guilty of armed assault against US officers, and using and carrying a firearm in relation to a crime of violence. The jury found that the attempted murders were not premeditated. Neither Siddiqui nor her lawyers have announced whether they will appeal the verdict. Sentencing is scheduled for May. (Jurist, Feb. 4)

The Swiss Federal Council announced Feb. 3 that it would accept two Uighur detainees from Guantánamo Bay. The council decided to admit the detainees for humanitarian reasons, despite the Chinese citizenship of both Uighurs and recent warnings by the Chinese Embassy that Switzerland would jeopardize relations with China by accepting the detainees. After psychological tests and further investigation, the Council concluded that the detainees did not pose a security threat. Authorities from the canton of Jura, where the detainees will be housed, announced that it was prepared to issue a residence permit. The Council has instructed the Federal Migration Office to approve the permits.

US Attorney General Eric Holder Feb. 3 defended his decision to charge suspected "Christmas Day bomber" Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab in US federal court. Holder, who has resisted calls from high-level Republicans to try Abdulmutallab in a military tribunal, said that the civilian criminal justice system was capable of handling his trial. In a letter to Senate minority leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY), Holder cited longstanding policy, first initiated under George W. Bush, that suspects apprehended on US soil are tried in civilian court. Holder also defended his decision to read Abdulmutallab his Miranda warnings as consistent with FBI policy on custodial interrogations.