Alleged USS Cole bombing mastermind pleads innocent (Local).

SANA'A, Nov. 12 -- The American lawyers of Abdul-Rahim Al-Nashiri, alleged mastermind of the October 2000 USS Cole bombing, stressed his innocence during a press conference held last Wednesday by HOOD, the National Organization for Defending Rights and Freedoms.

Despite the order from the District of Columbia Court of Appeals to the U.S. government to disclose all evidence against the detainees, the U.S. has not complied with this order and has not revealed any evidence against Al-Nashiri, said Gerald Bierbaum, a volunteering American lawyer.

"In the USA, lawyers are trained to give people the benefit of presumption of innocence [being innocent until proven guilty]," said Richard Kammen, 62, a counselor at law, who has won 40 death penalty cases in the U.S. "If the U.S. has strong evidence, why do they have to hide it for four years? Why the fight [for them] to disclose it?" ask Kammen and Bierbaum. "I have been in cases when the prosecutor cannot wait to bring the evidence," Kammen added, "If there is overwhelming proof, why hide it?"

In November 2002, Al-Nashiri, who was allegedly the highest-ranking lieutenant of Bin Laden, was captured in the United Arab Emirates. He is currently in American military custody in the Guantanamo Bay detention camp, having previously been held at another secret location. On Sept. 29, 2004, he was sentenced to death in absentia in a Yemeni court for his role in the USS Cole bombing. His former lawyers from the Allawo law firm quit the trial because they said it was unfair.

When Kammen was asked about Al-Nashiri's health, he said that they are not allowed to reveal any details as one of the conditions of being the detainees' lawyers and being able to visit them at Guantanamo.

But Kammen said those attending the conference could probably imagine his condition after having been kept in jail for many years, and exposed to sever torture such as waterboarding. "You can imagine how it feels," he said.

The lawyers believe that Al-Nashiri's case is part of the bigger picture of the other prisoners in Guantanamo. Yemeni Guantanamo detainees are the most in number, amounting to 104, and only four of them have been brought before military tribunals. Kammen said that the detainees had been kept in jail for many years, and it was time for them to return home to their families.

They also called for open and fair trials for the accused detainee in front of civilian court or criminal courts which abide to U.S. laws. Kammen said that he was not sure if Al-Nashiri could be acquitted in a civilian or criminal court, but thought that, if this court were open to the public and fair, his chances of release would be increased.

Kammen said that he cannot speak about the Yemeni government, but he believes that it wants its innocent citizens released.

Mohamed Naji Allawo, chairman of HOOD, questioned the reason behind Guantanamo Bay detainees of the other nationalities being allowed to return home, whereas Yemenis still have not. He believed that Yemen is looked upon as an inferior country due to the Yemeni government's lenient position.

Kammen added that the U.S. had asked the Yemeni government for guarantees -including a rehabilitation center for future Yemeni Guantanamo returnees- in part to reassure American citizens that the latter would not pose any future threat to local or international society. He explained that the U.S. was eager to keep up the image of dangerous Guantanamo detainees in order to cover up its mistake of detaining so many innocent people in the military prison.

Both Kammen and Bierbaum believe the evidence to be brought by the U.S. government against Al-Nashiri to be "exaggerated," if not "made up" or "false". Like Salim Hamdan, who was believed to be the driver of Osama Bin Laden, Al-Nashiri is perceived by the U.S. as a very high-valued detainee, but there were no serious or concrete charges against him.

The lawyers are quite optimistic because, according to the U.S. press, newly-elected U.S. president Barak Obama has promised to shut down Guantanamo. "I think the next battle is where and how the trial will be held," said Kammen.

Bierbaum and Kammen worked for the case for two reasons: because they are against death penalty, and to expose the lies of the Bush administration.

"The bigger part is that what the Bush administration doing is one lie after another, if lawyers in the U.S. do not expose these lies, there will be serious power," said Richard Kammen.

The two lawyers came to Yemen when they gave up hope of seeing any evidence brought by the U.S. against Al-Nashiri. They announced during the conference that they are waiting for any information or evidence that will help. They will post their emails on the HOOD website to obtain any information that could help the case....

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