Ali Saleh Kahlah al-Marri, a suspected al-Qaeda operative held in the Navy brig in South Carolina since 2003, is to be officially charged and tried in US federal court, following the unsealing of an indictment Feb. 27. Al-Marri, a legal US resident, was arrested in December 2001 in Peoria, Ill., and charged with being part of a terrorist sleeper cell and is the only person held as an enemy combatant in the United States. He is expected to be charged with providing material aid to terrorists. The move comes just two months before the Supreme Court is to hold hearings on al-Marri's petition for habeas corpus.

Lawyers for Canadian detainee Omar Khadr were blocked from attending a scheduled Feb. 24 meeting with Khadr at Guantánamo Bay. Officials have launched an investigation into the ethics of the defense team, and Navy Lt. Cmdr. Bill Kuebler, a military lawyer for Khadr, e-mailed media outlets to state that the investigation was prompted by his own criticism of lead defense counsel Air Force Col. Peter Masciola. Kuebler accused Masciola of having a disqualifying conflict of interest after Masciola allegedly implied that Khadr should face an additional civil trial, contradicting the position of the defense team that Khadr should be returned to Canada.

The US Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit ruled Feb. 24 that two former lobbyists may use classified documents in their defense against charges under the 1917 Espionage Act. Steven Rosen and Keith Weissman, previously with the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC), are charged with conspiring to convey classified US intelligence to the Israeli government. The decision affirms a ruling of the US District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia that the defendants would be allowed to use certain classified materials in their defense under the Classified Information Procedures Act (CIPA).

US Attorney General Eric Holder Feb. 25 confirmed the Obama administration's intention to close Guantánamo Bay in 2010 despite his belief that the facility is now well-run and that detainees are treated appropriately by guards. After visiting the prison earlier this week, Holder told reporters that he was impressed with what he saw there. His comments stand in direct contrast to statements made earlier this week by Reprieve human rights lawyer Ahmed Ghappour, who said that complaints of beatings and other abuses have increased substantially since December as guards supposedly anticipated closure and stricter restraints imposed by the new administration. Reprieve currently represents 31 Guantanamo detainees.

US citizen and accused al-Qaeda member Christopher Paul was sentenced to 20 years in prison Feb. 26 for conspiring to conduct a terrorist bombing campaign against targets in the US and Europe. Paul was sentenced by Judge Gregory Frost of the US District Court for the Southern District of Ohio. Originally from Columbus, Ohio, Paul pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to use a weapon of mass destruction in June 2008, agreeing to a sentence of 20 years.

An appeals court in Paris Feb. 24 overturned the terrorism convictions of five French nationals formerly detained at Guantánamo Bay. Arrested in Afghanistan in 2001, the men spent up to two years in US custody at Guantánamo. Sent back to France in 2007, where they were sentenced to prison on terrorism-related charges, although they were not imprisoned as they had already served time before the trial. The Paris appeals court ruled that the men had been improperly questioned by the French intelligence services while they were at Guantánamo, making the charges baseless. The men acknowledged spending time at Afghan military training camps, but said they never put their combat skills to use. (EuroNews, Feb. 24)

The US Justice Department announced Feb. 24 that notorious international arms smuggler Monzer al-Kassar, AKA "Abu Munawar" AKA "El Taous" was sentenced today to 30 years in prison for conspiring to sell millions of dollars worth of weapons to be used to kill US nationals in Colombia. Al-Kassar's associate and co-defendant Luis Felipe Moreno Godoy was sentenced to 25 years in prison for his role in the conspiracy. US District Judge Jed S. Rakoff imposed the sentences in Manhattan federal court.

Released Guantánamo Bay detainee Binyam Mohammed was returned to the UK Feb. 23 after being held for nearly seven years. Mohamed had immigrated from Ethiopia to the UK prior to his arrest, and it is not yet known whether he will be permitted to remain in the country, whose government he has repeatedly accused of being involved in his alleged torture. Mohamed recently ended a hunger strike, and British authorities declared him healthy enough to travel last week. The UK's Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) said that his return comes in response to a longstanding request for the return of UK residents held at Guantánamo.