Guantánamo judge rules Omar Khadr, arrested at 15, can be tried as war criminal

Thursdays hearing follows a decision last week by a US military judge to reject a motion by defense attorneys that, because Omar was a child when captured by US forces, he is entitled under international law to protection and assistance, rather than being subjected to prosecution.

Colonel Peter Brownback issued a brief ruling in which he described the international statutes dealing with the protection of children involved in armed conflict as interesting as a matter of policy, but made it clear that they would have no impact on the kangaroo court proceedings organized by the White House and the Pentagon at Guant·namo.

The upcoming trial represents the continuation of the vicious persecution of Omar Khadr that has gone on for nearly six years. Now 21, he has spent more than a quarter of his life in US detention, much of it while being subjected to solitary confinement, sensory deprivation, abusive interrogations and outright torture. Throughout this time, he has been denied education or any regular access to his family.