9/11 victim families want civil trials for terror suspects
http://www.presstv.ir/detail.aspx?id=122254§ionid=3510203
Fri, 02 Apr 2010 09:25:51 GMT
Family members of those killed in the September 11, 2001 terror attacks have urged US President Barack Obama to live up to earlier promises and try terror suspects in civilian court.
The September 11th Families for Peaceful Tomorrows, a group of more than 200 family members of 9/11 victims, said they prefer the suspects currently held at Guantanamo Bay Naval Base in Cuba to stand trial in US federal criminal courts rather than before military commissions.
In an emotional four-minute long video appeal, the group warned the US president against "buckling to political pressure" over the trial venue for the alleged 9/11 plotters.
The group argued that, while there have been hundreds of successfully completed terrorism-related trials in federal criminal courts, military commissions have only managed to wrap up three cases related to terrorism.
Donna Marsh O'Connor, a Peaceful Tomorrows member who lost her pregnant daughter on the attack against the World Trade Center, criticized the horse-trading politics surrounding terrorist trials in the US.
Reflecting disappointment with an alleged deal in which the White House would drop plans for civilian trials in exchange for Republican support for the closure of the detention camp at Guantanamo, O'Connor called on Obama to reject any such compromise.
"As 9/11 families, we have suffered greatly and waited almost nine years to see justice done with our own eyes," she said.
"We understand that you face political pressure to back down. We ask that you do not allow fear and prejudice to govern your decision -- as we are not afraid. We know our country is strong enough to hold on to our values in the face of terrorism," she added.
The September 11 attacks on the US resulted in the death of some 2,973 people, mostly those present in the twin towers of the World Trade Center.
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