Omar Khadr, Captured in Afghanistan at Age 15, Pleads Guilty to Terrorism Charges
A Canadian youth captured in Afghanistan when he was 15 years old pleaded guilty today to terrorism charges in the death of a U.S. soldier.
Omar Khadr, now 24, was accused of throwing a grenade that killed the soldier. In court today, he admitted he had received terrorist training from al-Qaida, had wanted to kill U.S. soldiers and was aware he was attacking civilians, the Globe and Mail reports.
The plea deal allows Khadr to return to Canada after serving one more year at Guantanamo, the story says. Any remaining sentence would be served in a Canadian prison.
According to the Los Angeles Times, military officers serving as jurors for the military commission in Guantanamo will begin hearing evidence on Tuesday. Under commission rules, the jurors decide a sentence even when a plea bargain sets the maximum time to be served. Khadr will serve the shorter of the two sentences.
As part of the deal, Khadr agreed to help U.S. terrorism investigators and to refrain from taking legal action against the United States, the Globe and Mail says.
