SECRETARY KERRY'S STATEMENT ON U.S.-CUBA AGREEMENT TO RE-ESTABLISH DIPLOMATIC RELATIONS

FROM:  U.S. STATE DEPARTMENT
07/01/2015 01:12 PM EDT
Statement on Cuba
Remarks
John Kerry
Secretary of State
Vienna, Austria
July 1, 2015

SECRETARY KERRY: Good afternoon, everybody. Thank you for your patience. In Washington a few moments ago, President Obama announced that we had reached an agreement to formally re-establish diplomatic relations with the Republic of Cuba and that we will reopen embassies in our respective countries.

Later this summer, as the President announced, I will travel to Cuba to personally take part in the formal reopening of our United States Embassy in Havana. This will mark the resumption of embassy operations after a period of 54 years. It will also be the first visit by a Secretary of State to Cuba since 1945. The reopening of our embassy, I will tell you, is an important step on the road to restoring fully normal relations between the United States and Cuba. Coming a quarter of a century after the end of the Cold War, it recognizes the reality of the changed circumstances, and it will serve to meet a number of practical needs.

The United States and Cuba continue to have sharp differences over democracy, human rights, and related issues, but we also have identified areas for cooperation that include law enforcement, safe transportation, emergency response, environmental protection, telecommunications, and migration. The resumption of full embassy activities will help us engage the Cuban Government more often and at a higher level, and it will also allow our diplomats to interact more frequently, and frankly more broadly and effectively, with the Cuban people. In addition, we will better be able to assist Americans who travel to the island nation in order to visit family members or for other purposes.

This transition, this moment in history, is taking place because President Obama made a personal, fundamental decision to change a policy that didn’t work and that had been in place not working for far too long. I believe that’s leadership, and I appreciate that leadership. And President Castro felt similarly that it was time for a change. Both leaders agree that concentrating on the issues and possibilities of the future is far more productive than remaining mired in the past. And I would say as we look at the world today with conflicts that we see and even these negotiations taking place here in Vienna, it is important for people to understand that things can change, that leadership can be effective and can make a difference.

This step has been long overdue, and the response of the international community has reflected the relief and the welcoming that people all over the world feel for this step. This step will advance the President’s vision – President Obama’s vision – of an Americas where responsibilities are widely shared and where countries combine their strengths to advance common interests and values. And we, frankly, also believe that this opening will help to change relationships in the region as a whole.

I want to thank Assistant Secretary of State Roberta Jacobson and her team, our team at the State Department, together with those at the White House who have worked to lead these discussions with their Cuban counterparts in order to enable the normalization of our diplomatic relations and the reopening of our embassies. I also want to thank the Government of Switzerland for the essential role that they have played in serving as the United States protecting power in Cuba for more than 50 years.

And finally, I want to acknowledge the efforts of many in the United States Congress, the Cuban American community, civil society, faith-based organizations, the private sector, and others throughout our country and beyond who have supported the start of a new chapter of relations between the United States and Cuba. I look forward to meeting again with my Cuban counterpart, Bruno Rodriguez, who I saw most recently in Panama, and I also look forward to greeting our embassy personnel and the Cuban people in Havana later this summer. I look forward to taking part in the reopening of our United States embassy and in the raising of the Stars and Stripes over that embassy, and the beginning of a new era of a new relationship with the people of Cuba. Thank you all very much.

QUESTION: Mr. Secretary, will American diplomats have free access to talk to people --

SECRETARY KERRY: We’ll talk about all those details later. I’m not going to take questions right now, folks, but I appreciate very much your patience and interest.

QUESTION: Just a few words about the negotiations here today, please.

SECRETARY KERRY: Well, I’ve got to take these away for that. (Laughter.) We are working very, very hard. We have some very difficult issues, but we believe we’re making progress and we’re going to continue to work because of that. Thank you all.

QUESTION: Foreign Minister Zarif said there’s no deadline. Is there?

SECRETARY KERRY: Thank you very much.

QUESTION: Is there a deadline, sir?

SECRETARY KERRY: We have our own sense of deadline.

BNP PARIBAS SENTENCED FOR VIOLATING TRADING WITH THE ENEMY ACT, INTERNATIONAL EMERGENCY ECONMIC POWERS ACT

FROM:  U.S. JUSTICE DEPARTMENT
Friday, May 1, 2015
BNP Paribas Sentenced for Conspiring to Violate the International Emergency Economic Powers Act and the Trading with the Enemy Act

BNP Paribas S.A. (BNPP), a global financial institution headquartered in Paris, was sentenced today for conspiring to violate the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) and the Trading with the Enemy Act (TWEA) by processing billions of dollars of transactions through the U.S. financial system on behalf of Sudanese, Iranian and Cuban entities subject to U.S. economic sanctions.  BNPP was sentenced to a five-year term of probation, and ordered to forfeit $8,833,600,000 to the United States and to pay a $140,000,000 fine.  Today’s sentencing is the first time a financial institution has been convicted and sentenced for violations of U.S. economic sanctions, and the total financial penalty—including the forfeiture and criminal fine—is the largest financial penalty ever imposed in a criminal case.

Assistant Attorney General Leslie R. Caldwell of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara of the Southern District of New York, Assistant Director in Charge Diego Rodriguez of the FBI’s New York Field Office and Chief Richard Weber of the Internal Revenue Service-Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI) made the announcement.  U.S. District Court Judge Lorna G. Schofield of the Southern District of New York imposed the sentence.

“BNP Paribas flouted U.S. sanctions laws to an unprecedented extreme, concealed its tracks, and then chose not to fully cooperate with U.S. law enforcement, leading to a criminal guilty plea and nearly $9 billion penalty” said Assistant Attorney General Caldwell.  “BNPP deliberately disregarded the law and provided rogue nations, and Sudan in particular, with vital access to the global financial system, helping that country’s lawless government to harbor and support terrorists and to persecute its own people.  Today’s sentence demonstrates that financial institutions will be punished severely but appropriately for violating sanctions laws and risking our national security interests.”

“BNPP, the world's fourth largest bank, has now been sentenced to pay a record penalty of almost $9 billion for sanctions violations that unlawfully opened the U.S. financial markets to Sudan, Iran, and Cuba,” said U.S. Attorney Bharara.  “BNPP provided access to billions of dollars to these sanctioned countries, and did so deliberately and secretly, in ways designed to evade detection by the U.S. authorities.  The sentence imposed today is appropriate for BNPP’s years-long and wide-ranging criminal conduct.”

“The sentencing of BNP Paribas Bank and the $9 Billion monetary penalty should sound the alarm to international financial institutions thinking of perpetrating these crimes,” said Chief Weber.  “The ability of IRS-CI and our partners to expose blatant violations of U.S. embargos and sanctions has changed the way financial matters are handled worldwide. We will continue to use our financial expertise to uncover these types of violations, as well as methodical and deliberate actions to conceal prohibited transactions from U.S. regulators and law enforcement.”

In connection with its guilty plea on July 9, 2014, BNPP admitted that from at least 2004 through 2012, it knowingly and willfully moved over $8.8 billion through the U.S. financial system on behalf of Sudanese, Iranian and Cuban sanctioned entities, in violation of U.S. economic sanctions.  The majority of illegal payments were made on behalf of sanctioned entities in Sudan, which was subject to U.S. embargo based on the Sudanese government’s role in facilitating terrorism and committing human rights abuses.  BNPP processed approximately $6.4 billion through the United States on behalf of Sudanese sanctioned entities from July 2006 through June 2007, including approximately $4 billion on behalf of a financial institution owned by the government of Sudan, even as internal emails showed BNPP employees expressing concern about the bank’s assisting the Sudanese government in light of its role in supporting international terrorism and committing human rights abuses during the same time period.  Indeed, in March 2007, a senior compliance officer at BNPP wrote to other high-level BNPP compliance and legal employees reminding them that certain Sudanese banks with which BNPP dealt “play a pivotal part in the support of the Sudanese government which . . . has hosted Osama Bin Laden and refuses the United Nations intervention in Darfur.”

Similarly, from October 2004 through early 2010, BNPP knowingly and willfully processed approximately $1.74 billion on behalf of Cuban sanctioned entities.  BNPP admitted that it continued to do U.S. dollar business with Cuba long after it was clear that such business was illegal.  BNPP further admitted that its conduct with regard to the Cuban embargo was both “cavalier” and “criminal.”

BNPP also engaged in more than $650 million of transactions involving entities tied to Iran, and this conduct continued into 2012—nearly two years after the bank had commenced an internal investigation into its sanctions compliance and pledged to cooperate with the government.  The illicit Iranian transactions included transactions for a petroleum company based in Dubai that was effectively a front for an Iranian petroleum company and an Iranian oil company.

In accepting BNPP’s guilty plea, Judge Schofield stated that BNPP’s actions “not only flouted U.S. foreign policy but also provided support to governments that threaten both our regional and national security and, in the case of Sudan, a government that has committed flagrant human rights abuses and has known links to terrorism.”  Judge Schofield further stated that the forfeiture of over $8 billion will “surely have a deterrent effect on others that may be tempted to engage in similar conduct, all of whom should be aware that no financial institution is immune from the rule of law.”

The Justice Department is exploring ways to use the forfeited funds to compensate individuals who may have been harmed by the sanctioned regimes of Sudan, Iran and Cuba.  As a preliminary step in this process, the Justice Department is inviting such individuals or their representatives to provide information describing the nature and value of the harm they suffered.  Beginning today (May 1, 2015), interested persons can learn more about this process and submit their information at www.usvbnpp.com [external link], or call 888-272-5632 (within North America) or 317-324-0382 (internationally).

In addition to its federal criminal conviction, BNPP pleaded guilty in New York State Supreme Court to falsifying business records and conspiring to falsify business records.  BNPP also agreed to a cease and desist order and to pay a civil monetary penalty of $508 million to the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System.  The New York State Department of Financial Services announced that BNPP agreed to, among other things, terminate or separate from the bank 13 employees, including the Group Chief Operating Officer and other senior executives; suspend U.S. dollar clearing operations through its New York Branch and other affiliates for one year for business lines on which the misconduct centered; extend for two years a monitorship put in place in 2013; and pay a monetary penalty of $2.24 billion.  In satisfying its criminal forfeiture penalty, BNPP will receive credit for payments it made in connection with its resolution of these related state and regulatory matters.  The Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control also levied a fine of $963 million, which will be satisfied by payments made to the Justice Department.

This case was investigated by the IRS-CI’s Washington Field Office and FBI’s New York Field Office.  This case was prosecuted by Deputy Chief Craig Timm and Trial Attorney Jennifer E. Ambuehl of the Criminal Division’s Asset Forfeiture and Money Laundering Section and Assistant U.S. Attorneys Andrew D. Goldstein, Martin S. Bell, Christine I. Magdo and Micah W.J. Smith of the Southern District of New York.

The New York County District Attorney’s Office conducted its own investigation alongside the Justice Department in this case.  The Justice Department expressed its gratitude to the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve, the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, the New York State Department of Financial Services and the Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control for their assistance with this matter.

SECRETARY KERRY'S PRESS STATEMENT ON RESCINDING CUBA'S TERRORISM DESIGNATION

FROM:  U.S. STATE DEPARTMENT
Recommendation to Rescind Cuba's Designation as a State Sponsor of Terrorism
Press Statement
John Kerry
Secretary of State
Washington, DC
April 14, 2015

In December 2014, as a critical component of establishing a new direction for U.S.–Cuba relations, the President directed the State Department to launch a review of Cuba’s designation as a State Sponsor of Terrorism and provide a report to him within six months. Last week, the State Department submitted a report to the White House recommending, based on the facts and the statutory standard, that President Obama rescind Cuba’s designation as a State Sponsor of Terrorism.

This recommendation reflects the Department’s assessment that Cuba meets the criteria established by Congress for rescission. While the United States has had, and continues to have, significant concerns and disagreements with a wide range of Cuba’s policies and actions, these concerns and disagreements fall outside of the criteria for designation as a State Sponsor of Terrorism. This review focused on the narrow questions of whether Cuba provided any support for international terrorism during the previous six months, and whether Cuba has provided assurances that it will not support acts of international terrorism in the future, consistent with the statutory standard for rescission.

Circumstances have changed since 1982, when Cuba was originally designated as a State Sponsor of Terrorism because of its efforts to promote armed revolution by forces in Latin America. Our Hemisphere, and the world, look very different today than they did 33 years ago. Our determination, pursuant to the facts, including corroborative assurances received from the Government of Cuba and the statutory standard, is that the time has come to rescind Cuba’s designation as a State Sponsor of Terrorism.

NASA VIDEO: CLOUD RINGS OFF THE COAST OF CUBA

FINDINGS, SENTENCE DISAPPROVED IN TERRORISM CASE AGAINST NOOR UTHMAN MUHAMMED

FROM:  U.S. DEFENSE DEPARTMENT 
Release No: NR-013-15
January 09, 2015
Findings and sentence disapproved in US v. Noor Uthman Muhammed

On Jan. 9, pursuant to his authority under 10 U.S.C. § 950b, the convening authority for military commissions disapproved the findings and sentence, and dismissed the charges in the case of United States v. Noor Uthman Muhammed.
Muhammed, a native of Sudan, pled guilty in February 2011 at a military commission to providing material support for terrorism and conspiracy to provide material support for terrorism. A panel of military officers sentenced him to fourteen years confinement. In accordance with the provisions of a pretrial agreement, a previous convening authority granted a deferment of confinement effective Dec. 3, 2013.

Muhammed was repatriated from Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, to Sudan on Dec. 19, 2013.

Subsequent to his commission proceedings, decisions by the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals in separate commissions cases established that it was legal error to try the offense of providing material support for terrorism before a military commission. The decisions of the D.C. Circuit are binding on commissions cases and the convening authority’s action to disapprove the findings and sentence in Muhammed’s case is required in the interests of justice and under the rule of law.

SECRETARY KERRY'S OP-ED ON CUBA POLICY

FROM:  U.S. STATE DEPARTMENT 
President Obama's New Cuba Policy Looks Forward, Not Back
Op-Ed
John Kerry
Secretary of State
Secretary of Commerce Penny Pritzker, Treasury Secretary Jacob J. Lew
Miami Herald
December 20, 2014

President Obama’s decision to begin normalizing relations with Cuba will advance United States’ interests and those of the Cuban people. The 11 million people of this island nation have waited far too long — over half a century — to fulfill their democratic aspirations and build closer ties with the rest of the world in the 21st century. Our new U.S. policy on Cuba reflects the reality that past policies — although well-intentioned — no longer suit today’s situation. The president’s announcement reflects a historic turning of the page on enmities born of a different era and toward a brighter and more promising future.

Early in his administration, the president took steps to ease restrictions on Cuban-American visits and remittances that opened new pathways for family reunification — and later expanded this to include religious, academic and cultural exchanges for all Americans. Last week’s decision builds boldly on those initial measures and will increase communications, commerce and travel between our two countries. The State Department will lead discussions to restore regular diplomatic relations with Cuba for the first time since 1961 and re-establish an embassy in Havana. In our bilateral discussions, the United States will seek to advance cooperation on issues of mutual interest, including counter-narcotics, migration, combating trafficking-in-persons, the Ebola crisis and shared environmental challenges.

The president has made clear that a critical focus of these actions will include continued strong support for improved human-rights conditions and democratic reforms in Cuba. The promotion of democracy supports universal human rights by empowering civil society and supporting the freedom of individuals to exercise their freedoms of speech and assembly. For these reasons, we welcome Cuba’s decision to release more than 50 political prisoners, expand Internet access for Cuba’s citizens and allow better human-rights monitoring by the International Red Cross and United Nations. Our firm support for progress in these areas will be unwavering, and we will continue to implement programs to promote positive change in Cuba.

As Albert Einstein said long ago, it’s just not rational to continue doing the same thing in the expectation of obtaining a different result. Since U.S.-Cuban relations were frozen, the world has been transformed; the Cold War ended a quarter century ago. Over time the U.S. effort to isolate Cuba began to have the reverse effect of isolating the United States especially in the Western Hemisphere. Meanwhile, Cuban leaders used our stance as a source of propaganda, to justify policies that have no place in the 21st century. It has been an open secret that the relationship has been in a rut that benefits no one on either side. The time has come to cease looking backward and to begin to move forward in the interests of both freedom-loving Cubans and the United States.

What, specifically, has the president decided to do?

First, he has authorized U.S. officials to expand travel, increase remittances and grow bilateral trade. To facilitate this and ensure proper oversight, the Treasury Department will also make banking easier and allow the use of U.S. debit and credit cards in Cuba. In addition, it will strengthen the monitoring and transparency of financial flows between the United States and Cuba by allowing American financial institutions to open correspondent accounts at Cuban banks. One effect of all of the changes will be to increase the ability of Americans to provide business training and other support for Cuba’s nascent private sector, which already includes 500,000 employees. In this regard, the Commerce Department will ease current export limits on a variety of products that would help Cuban small businesses grow such as construction firms, agricultural companies, automobile repair and others.

Second, the president’s decision will support new efforts to tear down the digital wall that isolates Cubans. The country has an Internet penetration rate of 5 percent, among the lowest in the world. Prices are high, and services are limited. Under the new policy, we will permit the sale of technology that will begin to unleash the transformative effects of the Internet on the island.

Third, the president has ordered reforms in the application of U.S. sanctions to Cubans in third countries.

Fourth, the president has asked the State Department to review Cuba’s designation as a state sponsor of terrorism to ensure that any such designation is guided entirely by the facts and law.

All this is in addition to the start of talks aimed at the restoration of normal diplomatic relations. Next month, Assistant Secretary of State Roberta Jacobson will lead the U.S. delegation to the next round of U.S.-Cuba Migration talks, and the Commerce Department will lead a business delegation to the country in the coming months. In the spring, President Obama will travel to Panama for the 2015 Summit of the Americas, where we are encouraging full participation by representatives of Cuban civil society. Meanwhile, the United States has welcomed home USAID subcontractor Alan Gross, who was wrongfully jailed in Cuba for more than five years, and also an American intelligence agent who had been imprisoned for two decades.

President Obama’s announcement last week is forward-looking and emphasizes the value of people-to-people relations, increased commerce, more communications and respectful dialogue. It will enhance our ability to have a positive impact on events inside Cuba and to help improve the lives of the Cuban people. It will put American businesses on a more equal footing. And it will enhance the standing of our own country in the hemisphere and around the world.

READOUT: VP BIDEN'S MEETING WITH DIDIER BURKHALTER, PRESIDENT OF SWISS CONFEDERATION

FROM:  THE WHITE HOUSE 
Readout of Vice President Biden’s Meeting with President of the Swiss Confederation and Chairperson-in-Office of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe Didier Burkhalter

Vice President Biden met today with the President of the Swiss Confederation and Chairperson-in-Office for the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe, Didier Burkhalter, to discuss regional and bilateral issues of concern.  The two leaders consulted on the current situation in Ukraine, including what support the United States and the OSCE could offer to help return the country to peace and stability, to ensure justice and accountability, and to strengthen democratic institutions as Ukrainians chart their future course.  The Vice President praised the strong and important friendship between our two countries and expressed deep appreciation for Switzerland’s continued protection of U.S. interests in Iran and Cuba.  The Vice President and President Burkhalter discussed opportunities for continued cooperation across our shared agenda, including on non-proliferation, countering violent extremism, development and humanitarian assistance.   Finally, given shared interest in strengthening workforce skills, the Vice President and President Burkhalter discussed vocational and other job skills training efforts in both countries.

SECRETARY OF STATE KERRY'S STATEMENT REGARDING RELEASE OF KEVIN SUTAY FROM FARC

FROM:  U.S. STATE DEPARTMENT 
Release of Kevin Sutay From Captivity by the FARC
Press Statement
John Kerry
Secretary of State
Washington, DC
October 27, 2013

We welcome the release today of Kevin Scott Sutay from captivity at the hands of the FARC.

The United States is profoundly grateful to the Government of Colombia and commends its tireless efforts to secure his release. We offer special thanks to President Juan Manuel Santos for his assistance.

We also appreciate the contributions of the International Committee of the Red Cross, and the Governments of Norway and Cuba in securing Mr. Sutay’s freedom. And we thank the Reverend Jesse Jackson for his efforts in consistently advocating for Mr. Sutay’s release.

SECRETARY OF DEFENSE HAGEL APPOINTS PAUL M. LEWIS FOR CLOSURE OF GUANTANAMO FACILITY

FROM:  U.S. DEFENSE DEPARTMENT 
Hagel Appoints Special Envoy for Guantanamo Closure
American Forces Press Service

WASHINGTON, Oct. 8, 2013 - Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel today announced the appointment of Paul M. Lewis as special envoy for the closure of the detention facility at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.

The announcement reflects the Defense Department's commitment to implementing President Barack Obama's directive to close the facility, Pentagon officials said.

Lewis brings experience from his previous position as the minority general counsel of the House Armed Services Committee, where he oversaw Guantanamo-related issues, officials said. In addition to facilitating transfer determinations for Guantanamo detainees, he will oversee efforts to transfer third-country nationals currently being held by the United States in Afghanistan, they added.

He also has served as the general counsel for the House Armed Services Committee, and previously served in the Office of Legislative Counsel in the Defense Department general counsel's office, where he became the director. Before his Defense Department appointment, he was the counsel to the chairman of the House Ethics Committee and a senior counsel for the House Armed Services Committee.

Lewis will begin his work at the Pentagon on Nov. 1.

HEARING FOR ACCUSED USS COLE BOMBER GOES ON

FROM: U.S. DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE
Hearing for Accused USS Cole Bomber Continues, Despite Delays
By Donna Miles
American Forces Press Service

FORT MEADE, Feb. 4, 2013 - Pre-trial hearings for the alleged bomber of the USS Cole opened today at Naval Station Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, and encountered issues from both the prosecution and defense that threatened more delays.

The first of four days of pre-trial hearings in the government's case against Abd al Rahim Hussein Mohammed Abdu al-Nashiri opened with the defense asking for a postponement over concerns that third-party monitoring could spill over to confidential attorney-client communications.

Army Col. James L. Pohl, the commission judge, denied the request by Navy Lt Cmdr. Stephen Reyes, saying it was based on unsubstantiated suspicion. The judge upheld prosecutor Anthony Mattivi's argument that the defense bears the burden of proving such allegations and said in his ruling that lacking such proof, the trial will go on.

The debate stemmed from an incident last week during pre-trial hearings for five defendants charged with orchestrating the 9/11 terrorist attacks.

During the Jan. 28 hearing, an unnamed "original classification authority" activated a censor button in the courtroom. The button set off a flashing warning light and blocked about two minutes of audio for everyone observing the proceedings via closed-circuit TV, as well as for media, who sit behind soundproof glass in the courtroom.

The incident caught Pohl and others by surprise, and he ruled last week that in the future, only he will have the authority to block audio feeds believed to contain classified information.
But Reyes told Pohl today the incident opened a Pandora's Box that needs resolution.

"We can't ignore the man behind the curtain," he said, because it is unclear how pervasive the monitoring is. Reyes said the defense team must assume that if a third-party organization is listening in on courtroom activities, it must also assume that it's eavesdropping on other activities, including privileged discussions between defense lawyers and their client.

"We see a tremendous ethical issue here," Reyes said. Until these questions are answered, he said there is no way to effectively defend Nashiri. Civilian defense counsel Richard Kammen told the judge he would not meet with his client outside the courtroom until this issue is resolved.

To address these concerns, Pohl suggested that all microphones at empty desks within the courtroom, as well as at the defense table, be "ripped out" and that attorneys address the court only from the podium. He did not, however, order the removal.

Army Brig. Gen. Mark Martins, chief prosecutor in the Office of Military Commissions, denied any insinuation that the prosecution is listening in on or has any access to privileged communication between the defense and defendant.

The prosecution "actively avoids the confidential communications between an accused and his counsel," he wrote in a statement released today. "This is part of our professional responsibilities and our oaths to serve justice. No one has ever asserted a substantive or credible allegation that the prosecution listens to such communications."

After Pohl's ruling, Reyes asked for a three-hour delay to consult with other members of the defense team. The judge approved the request but chided Reyes for not being prepared to move forward and said all parties should be prepared to do so in the future, regardless of how he rules on their motions.

But the government's case against Nashiri encountered another potential delay as discussion turned to Nashiri's mental competence. Much of today's hearing delved into whether he should be evaluated before the trial goes forward, and by whom.

The prosecution challenged the defense claim that Nashiri suffers from long-term post-traumatic stress disorder allegedly caused by CIA torture before he was transferred to Guantanamo Bay. Navy Cmdr. Andrea Lockhart asked Pohl to order a mental health board to evaluate Nashiri and determine the validity of this claim. Kammen questioned what such an assessment would provide, telling Pohl he lacks faith in whatever "hacks" the convening authority might appoint to conduct it.

The judge authorized a mental health exam. But before it is conducted, he granted the defense's request that Dr. Vincent Iacopino, a member of the Physicians for Human Rights organization, be called on to provide advice on how to conduct it without "doing harm."

Iacopino is expected to testify within the next day or two. Pohl said he would not take up other legal and administrative issues surrounding the case until after the mental-health assessment is complete.

The prosecution asked the judge today to clarify previous rulings that give Nashiri the right to skip court sessions if he chooses, while also allowing him to change his mind during a day's proceedings and be transported to the hearing.

The defense team also requested that Nashiri not be restrained with belly chains when he is moved within the detention facility. Defense attorneys said the chains could bring up past trauma from the period when Nashiri was allegedly restrained while he was tortured.

Prosecutors raised concern that eliminating current security safeguards could threaten the safety of others, including the guard force.

Nashiri, who appeared in court in a traditional white tunic and wore headphones to follow the translated proceedings, is the alleged mastermind behind the attack off the Yemeni coast that killed 17 sailors. He is charged with perfidy, murder in violation of the law of war, attempted murder in violation of the law of war, terrorism, conspiracy, intentionally causing serious bodily injury, attacking civilians, attacking civilian objects and hazarding a vessel.

The charges arise out of an attempted attack on the USS The Sullivans in January 2000, the actual attack on the USS Cole in October 2000, and an attack on the motor vessel Limburg -- a civilian oil tanker -- in October 2002.

Nashiri is a Saudi-born member of al-Qaida. U.S. officials allege he was under the personal supervision of Osama bin Laden, and that bin Laden personally approved the attacks on the U.S. Navy ships.

RECENT U.S. NAVY PHOTOS

FROM:  U.S. NAVY
The amphibious transport dock ship Pre-Commissioning Unit (PCU) Anchorage (LPD 23) visits Naval Station Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, for logistic support including fuel and water. The San Antonio-class ship is currently on her homeport transit to Naval Base San Diego, Calif. Anchorage is scheduled to be commissioned May 2013 in her namesake city of Anchorage, Alaska. Naval Station Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, serves as the logistical hub for military and merchant vessels operating in the United States Southern Commmand (SOUTHCOM) area of responsibilitiy. U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Justin Ailes (Released) 121106-N-WW127-780

Landing Craft Air Cushion 29, assigned to Naval Beach Unit (NBU) 7, exits the well deck of the amphibious assault ship USS Bonhomme Richard (LHD 6) carrying equipment belonging to the 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit (31st MEU) as they offload to White Beach, Okinawa. Bonhomme Richard is the lead ship of the only forward-deployed amphibious ready group. U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Adam M. Bennett (Released) 121105-N-SO729-101

HURRICANE SANDY MAKES LANDFALL AT NAVAL STATION GUANTANAMO BAY, CUBA

FROM: U.S. NAVY
Hurricane Sandy makes landfall at Naval Station Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. Hurricane Condition of Readiness 3 (COR III) was set base-wide in preparation for storm winds greater than 50 knots. Among a myriad of precautionary measures taken at the installation, all beaches were closed and all boating, diving and recreational swimming was suspended. All schools, roads and facilities were closed. Base residents were reminded on the importance of being prepared with a essential supplies and were advised to remain within their residence until the "all clear" was passed. The U.S. Navy is reliable, flexible, and ready to respond worldwide on, above, and below the sea. Join the conversation on social media using #warfighting. The U.S. Navy is reliable, flexible, and ready to respond worldwide on, above, and below the sea. Join the conversation on social media using #warfighting. U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Justin Ailes (Released) 121024-N-WW127-319

9/11 HEARINGS POSTPONED BECAUSE OF STORM

FROM: U.S. DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE

Sailors pile sandbags against the walls of Naval Security Forces headquarters at Naval Station Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, Aug. 22, 2012, in preparation for wind and rain from tropical storm Isaac. DOD photo by Cheryl Pellerin

Judge Postpones 9/11 Hearings as Guantanamo Preps for Storm

By Cheryl Pellerin
American Forces Press Service

NAVAL STATION GUANTANAMO BAY, Cuba, Aug. 23, 2012 - Lawyers, observers and media are leaving the island today after the base commanding officer recommended their evacuation ahead of tropical storm Isaac's projected path to Cuba.

Military commissions judge Army Col. James L. Pohl postponed hearings of five accused 9/11 detainees that were scheduled to begin today after an unrelated one-day delay due to technical issues.

No new date was set for the hearings.

Pohl said he based the decision on impending weather conditions, concern for the safety and welfare of personnel, and a recommendation by the station's commanding officer, Navy Capt. John R. Nettleton.

The hearings -- in the case of the United States v. Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, Walid Muhammad Salih Mubarak Bin Attash, Ramzi Binalshibh, Ali Abdul Aziz Ali and Mustafa Ahmed Adam al Hawsawi -- were originally scheduled to begin yesterday. But in the early morning hours of Aug. 21, a coal-train derailment in suburban Baltimore killed two young women and damaged fiber-optic lines that carry Internet traffic to and from Guantanamo Bay.

The damage caused loss of Internet connectivity for the base and for the Office of Military Commissions, and it hindered the ability of the defense team, according to an emergency motion filed by the team.

"Our hearts go out to the families of the two young women who were killed by the train wreck that resulted in our communications in Guantanamo being cut off," Army Brig. Gen. Mark S. Martins, chief prosecutor in the Office of Military Commissions, said in a news conference yesterday.

Instances of delay and disruption are nothing new to civilian and military courts, "but we're going to certainly move forward methodically [and] the court is going to take up these issues," Martins said.

Pohl said a forthcoming docketing order would set a date for the next sessions in the case.

Around the 45-square-mile naval base, people were busy with preparations for tropical storm Isaac. Some weather models are forecasting that the storm's winds and rain could make landfall on the island the afternoon of Aug. 25, affecting Cuba's southeast corner, where the base was established in 1903.

"I recommended that all the lawyers and everybody [who is part of the Office of Military Commissions] leave and come back [at a later date] and restart. But it's not my decision, it's my recommendation," Nettleton told reporters before the postponement. His recommendation for evacuation, he noted, included nonessential personnel and visitors.

The commanding officer, who's been at Guantanamo Bay Naval Station for about six weeks, said the last major hurricane that affected the base was Inez in 1963. That storm dumped 36 inches of rain onto the island, he added.

"Right now, [Isaac] is a big swath of projected winds," the captain said. "It's down from 110 to 115 [knots] to about 60 to 70 knots in the last projection we have. But it could speed up, and the wind speed could go up or it could go down."

As the storm pushes rain and heavy winds toward Cuba, he said, preparations on the island include cleaning up debris that the winds could turn into missiles, closing the hangars, securing buildings, moving people who are at risk into sturdier buildings, and hauling boats out of the water.

At the wharf yesterday, a 600-ton crane began hauling boats out of the water and rolling on giant tires over heavy concrete tracks to a dry dock several hundred feet away.

Over a 24-hour period, a port operations officer said, they'll move up to 17 boats and ferries -- from 22-foot center-console oil-spill response boats to 120-foot amphibious landing craft -- out of the water to avoid waves and storm surge.

Dark clouds moved over half the sky as the crane worked and as sailors snugged sandbags up against the walls of Naval Security Forces headquarters, located in a low-lying area near the harbor.

Nettleton said several hundred nonessential personnel and visitors will leave the island, leaving roughly 5,600 residents, including service members, workers and families, and their pets.

"Everybody on the base is pretty good at [storm preparation], because this is one of the things that we drill to constantly. ... This is actually one of the best harbors in the Caribbean, so the thing I worry about is a little bit of complacency," he said. "[But] procedurally, we're solid."

As the storm gets close, he said, an orderly shutdown of services will begin.

"We'll turn the water plant off, we'll turn the electricity off, [and] we'll go on backup generators because it's easier on the system than letting the power fail," Nettleton said. They'll also shut down activity on the beaches and on the bay.

Just before hurricane season, he said, base personnel take coconuts off the trees so the hard shells don't become deadly missiles in a storm.

Isaac may postpone the island's fresh food flight, which comes in on Saturdays, Nettleton added, and heavy rain on an island made of clay and coral could cause rockslides and close roads.

"But we'll be fine," the captain said. "We have massive amounts of support. The U.S. government will make sure everybody's good."

Once everything is shut down, the residents will shelter in place, he said. "Once the storm's passed, the first thing we'll do is sweep the area and make sure everything's clear, then slowly open services back up," he added.

It's been so long since Cuba experienced a major hurricane, some observers think it's unlikely that Isaac will be a problem here

The suggestion to evacuate nonessential personnel and visitors was "a conservative call," he said, "[but] it's one I'm always going to make, because it's about lives."

SOUTHCOM COMMANDER SAYS EVENTS IN SOUTH AMERICAN NATIONS AFFECT NATIONAL SECURITY

FROM:  AMERICAN FORCES PRESS SERVICE 
Marines attached to a Special Purpose Marine Air Ground Task Force guard an extraction point in the marshes of Santo Tomas, Guatemala, Dec. 6, 2011, as a part of Amphibious-Southern Partnership Station 2012, an annual deployment of U.S. military teams to the U.S. Southern Command region. Partnership is a cornerstone of U.S. military engagement in the Southern Command area of responsibility. U.S. Navy photo by Petty Officer 1st Class Isaiah Sellers III.  



Regional Challenges Drive Southcom's Agenda
By Donna Miles
MIAMI, June 18, 2012 - Air Force Gen. Douglas M. Fraser, commander of U.S. Southern Command, regularly tells members of Congress, audiences around the region and members of his command that events in South America, Central America and the Caribbean affect U.S. national security.

"The hemisphere is our shared home," Fraser noted in his Command Strategy 2020 "Partnership for the Americas" document issued in July.

"We are all Americans" in the region, he added.

While a mere glance at a map underscores the obvious physical connection among the hemisphere's nations, Fraser cited other bonds that cross economic, cultural, ideological and security lines.

"Latin America and the Caribbean are vitally important to the security and future of the United States," he said. "The nations of the region are inextricably linked, and we face common challenges to our security and stability."

With globalization unfolding at lightning speed over the past decade, transforming commerce, culture, trade and technology, it's had a profound impact on security as well, the general noted in his 2012 Southcom posture statement, released in March.

Fraser said he's particularly concerned about "the parallel globalization of organized crime, violence, murder and kidnapping related to illicit trafficking."

He noted that in many parts of the hemisphere, particularly in Central America, transnational organized crime has evolved to become a "volatile and potentially destabilizing threat to both citizen and regional security."

These sophisticated networks operate across national borders and dividing lines for U.S. geographic combatant commands, demanding an unprecedented level of cooperation among those attempting to counter them -- regionally, nationally and across U.S. agencies, he said.

"The challenge for United States Southern Command is to find creative ways to enhance the interagency, public-private and partner-nation cooperation as we plan, train and operate with regional military to address the predominant security concerns in the region," Fraser said.

Fraser recognized other persistent challenges facing the region, including poverty, crime, corruption, institutional weakness, illicit trafficking and terrorism. "These challenges complicate our collective efforts to secure the hemisphere," he stated in his 2020 command strategy. "At the same time, security helps provide the very means to address these issues."

He cited the vulnerability of much of Latin America and the Caribbean to humanitarian crises, mass migrations and natural disasters.

Southcom works closely with partner nations to strengthen their humanitarian assistance and disaster relief capabilities, Fraser told the House Armed Services Committee in May. "And we remain ready to respond should our assistance be requested," he added.

Meanwhile, Southcom watches for potential geopolitical turbulence that could affect U.S. citizens and military personnel in the region, he said in his posture statement. He cited Cuba, Haiti, Bolivia and Venezuela as areas of particular interest.

Frasier noted the yet-to-be-seen long-term effects of Cuba's market reforms under Raul Castro's leadership. Haiti, while making slow but steady progress, remains vulnerable to natural disasters and economic hardship, the general said.

Meanwhile, he added, public demonstrations in Bolivia related to low wages, high food prices and energy shortages are likely to continue until the Bolivian government addresses these issues. And in Venezuela, Fraser recognized continuing uncertainty about President Hugo Chavez' health, as well as continued economic instability and escalating violence that he said place increasing demands on that country's government.

Adding to the list of concerns, Fraser pointed to Hezbollah supporters operating throughout South America and the fact that the region has become home to a small number of violent extremist organizations.

"We remain vigilant for the potential radicalization of homegrown extremists," he said. Fraser noted that Sunni extremists, while small in number, are actively involved in radicalization efforts.

Jamaica's Shaykh Abdullah al-Faisal, for example, was convicted in the United Kingdom for inciting terrorism, he said. Al-Qaida senior operative Adnan el-Shukrijumah has held valid passports for the United States as well as Guyana and Trinidad and Tobago, where he has family and associates. And despite recent convictions in the 2007 plot to attack the John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York, one of the alleged co-conspirators remains at large in Guyana.

Meanwhile, Fraser noted, Iran represents a troublesome influence in the region, attempting to circumvent international sanctions through ties with Venezuela, Ecuador, Bolivia, Nicaragua and Cuba. "We take Iranian activity in the hemisphere seriously, and we monitor its activities closely," he said.

In presenting his command priorities, Fraser emphasized four major objectives:

-- Strengthen regional partnerships;
-- Increase partner capability;
-- Confront regional challenges; and
-- Support humanitarian and disaster response, as required.

Fraser called partnership-building "the cornerstone of our strategic approach." It ensures the forward defense of the United States, he said, by promoting capable regional militaries that share in the responsibility of hemispheric security and stability.

"What we focus on in the region is building partner capacity and security cooperation, collaboratively, with willing nations," Navy Vice Adm. Joseph D. Kernan, Southcom's military deputy commander, told American Forces Press Service at the command's headquarters here. "We endeavor to plan extensively with them, ensuring that our efforts to help build their security in ways they believe are helpful to them."

These efforts are coordinated closely with the State Department and with full respect for each partner nation's sovereignty, Kernan said.

"We truly want to be the security partner of choice," said Army Maj. Gen. Gerald W. Ketchum, director of the command's theater engagement directorate, who oversees many of the programs designed to build those partnerships. "And as we work to build them, we want those partnerships to be enduring."

In establishing new ties and strengthening existing ones, Kernan said, Southcom is demonstrating the deep U.S. commitment to the region.

"We have to pursue a persistent, welcomed presence with countries in the region," he said. "That is what builds lasting relations and mutual respect. We need to be able to stand alongside our partners and talk about collectively addressing common security problems."

Fraser said efforts to strengthen and enhance partner nations' ability to respond to domestic and regional threats -- individually and collectively -- will pay off in long-term security for the region.

"We envision a hemisphere characterized by nations working together to address the emerging security challenges of the coming decade," he said.

ARRAIGNMENTS OVER, 9/11 TRIAL IS COMING

DETENTION CAMP – A U.S. Army soldier stands guard as a detainee spends time in the exercise yard outside Camp Five at the Joint Task Force Guantanamo detention center on Naval Base Guantanamo Bay.  U.S. Army photo by Staff Sgt. Jon Soucy.   

FROM:  AMERICAN FORCES PRESS SERVICE
Arraignment Ends as Legal Teams Gird for Long 9/11 Trial
By Karen Parrish
NAVAL STATION GUANTANAMO BAY, Cuba, May 6, 2012 - Defense and prosecution teams said today they expect the trial of five alleged 9/11 co-conspirators to take many months or years, while family members of those killed Sept. 11, 2001, said they're glad the trial is in the military's hands.

Yesterday's roughly 13-hour arraignment here of Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, Walid Muhammad Salih Mubarak bin Attash, Ramzi bin al Shibh, Ali Abdul Aziz Ali and Mustafa Ahmed Adam al Hawsawi was the first chapter of what attorneys on both sides describe as an epically complicated trial to come.

Army Col. James Pohl, the judge in the case, yesterday set the first motions hearing for June 12. Army Brig. Gen. Mark Martins, chief prosecutor, said he expects "hundreds of motions" during the proceedings.

"For so many determined people involved in this trial, the pursuit of justice is worth every moment spent," he said.

Martin noted many of the motions the defense team has filed and likely will file involve classification issues. The motions process -- in which either side can file, the other side responds, and finally the judge rules – serves to "tee up" a common approach to contested issues, the general said.

Martins acknowledged government investigations have concluded defendants were tortured during the early stages of their confinement. That greatly complicates the case, he said, but doesn't lessen the trial's importance. Torture is deplorable and shameful, he said. "The remedy is not to just dismiss all charges; it's harder than that," he added.

Martins said the government's case will not include any evidence resulting from torture. He added he doesn't agree with defense attorneys' contention that classification rules prevent them from discussing their clients' mistreatment or torture with them.

"They can talk to their clients about anything," the chief prosecutor said. What attorneys can't do, he said, is provide their clients with information that involves "sources and methods": locations of detention facilities; identities of cooperating governments; identities of anyone involved in the capture, transfer, detention or interrogation of detainees; interrogation techniques applied to individual detainees unless that information has been declassified; and conditions of confinement.

"If, in those five categories, there's material that relates to source and method that can still protect people from terrorist attacks, ... then that's going to be classified, and we're going to work to protect it," he said. Typically, that sort of information would be discussed in closed court, he said.

Defense attorneys have a "healthy skepticism" about the level of transparency possible in the case, Martins noted.

"What we're trying to do is put the question of the fate of these individuals – their guilt or innocence ... and the appropriate sentence – to a panel of 12 jury men and women," he said.

Defense attorneys differed in the views they shared with reporters today on yesterday's arraignment.

James Harrington is "learned counsel" for Shibh, which means he is experienced in death penalty cases. Under military commissions rules, each defendant in a capital case is assigned a learned counsel.

While the arraignment was very long, Harrington said, "I could say it went smoother than some people had anticipated. ... Things are set to progress."

Defense teams' jobs are to defend their clients, regardless of public opinion or the sympathy the attorneys feel for 9/11 victims' families, he added. "[The defendants] are entitled to a fair trial," he said. "It's our obligation to try and get them a fair trial."
Navy Cmdr. Walter Ruiz, learned counsel for Hawsawi, said yesterday's proceedings were "terrible."

"We had some measure of hope" that legal issues raised by defense attorneys would be heard, Ruiz said. "They were not."

He said that after the arraignment yesterday, he discussed the likely duration of the coming hearings and eventual trial with a colleague. Ruiz recounted what he told his coworker: "I said, 'I didn't believe you when you said I might retire from here.' And then I said, 'I may never have another legal job.'"

He added he hopes the second trial for the accused – the first was suspended, and the military commission process changed – doesn't repeat the mistakes of the earlier proceedings.

"What is important to understand is that the reason this process has to drag on ... is because [proceedings under the previous rules] tried to cut corners constitutionally ... [and] procedurally," Ruiz said.

While attorneys on both sides predict a hard grind ahead, several family members of 9/11 victims who attended the arraignment said they are glad the proceedings happen here.
Mary Henwood and her sister, Tara Henwood-Butzbaugh, attended the proceedings in memory of their brother, John Henwood, who was 35 when he was killed in the World Trade Center's Tower 1.

"He was murdered that day. He was terrorized, and he was murdered," she said. To the question of whether military commissions are appropriate to the case, she replied, "Absolutely."

Henwood said she has met with the prosecution and has seen the trial facilities here. "I feel very comfortable that this is finally happening," she said.

Cliff and Christina Russell came here in honor of Cliff's brother, Stephen, a New York City firefighter who died in Tower 1.
"I'm comfortable with it being [a capital case], ... I'm comfortable with it being military, and I'm comfortable with it being here, as opposed to being in [a] federal courthouse," he said.

Russell added he came to see the proceedings not out of a desire for vengeance, but for "some kind of psychological satisfaction."
Eddie Bracken came to Cuba to pay tribute to his sister, Lucy Fishman, who died in Tower 2. Bracken said a fair and just trial for the accused will show the world what America is based on.

"Do I respect the people that are defending them? Yes," he said. "It's about our justice system and how we uphold it."
On the location, Bracken said, "I'd rather have it here. This is the safest place in the world."

Bracken offered a comment he'd direct to Defense Secretary Leon E. Panetta if he were here: "Your people are doing a great job."

Martins said the reading of the charges in yesterday's arraignment provided a "stirring reminder" of the crimes that occurred Sept. 11, 2001.