Guantanamo Bay Naval Base, Cuba – An Australian terrorism suspect pleaded guilty Monday to a war-crime charge of providing material support to terrorism.
David Hicks was the first detainee to face prosecution under revised military tribunals set up after the Supreme Court found the Pentagon’s previous system for trying Guantanamo prisoners unconstitutional. He is accused of fighting alongside al-Qaeda in Afghanistan.
Hicks entered the plea before a military judge in a courtroom on this U.S. naval base. Hicks had deferred entering a plea during his arraignment earlier in the day, but the presiding officer, Marine Col. Ralph Kohlmann, convened another session after lawyers told him Hicks would enter a plea.
Kohlmann ordered attorneys to attend another session today to sort out details of the plea. He did not discuss sentencing.
In the days leading to the hearing, defense attorneys said Hicks, a 31-year-old Muslim convert, did not expect a fair trial at Guantanamo and was considering a plea deal to end his five-year imprisonment. U.S. officials have said he would be able to serve any sentence in Australia.
Terry Hicks, who had an emotional reunion with his son before the arraignment Monday, had boarded a plane to leave Guantanamo when he was told another session would be held, according to U.S. military officials. He did not appear in the courtroom for the second session.
In the first session Monday, David Hicks asked for more than the three lawyers he had, but the presiding military officer instead ordered two of the attorneys to leave the defense table.
The U.S. military says Hicks, armed with grenades and an assault rifle, spent weeks trying to join the battle in Afghanistan alongside the Taliban against invading U.S. and allied forces, but the Taliban’s lines collapsed hours after he reached the front.
