The jury in the U.S. war crimes trial of Salim Hamdan delivered a sentence Thursday of 5 ½ years in prison for providing material support to al-Qaida. With time served, the sentence amounts to slightly less than 5 months in jail.
The Pentagon had sought a 30-year term for the former driver of Osama bin Laden, but the Defense Department may continue his detention in perpetuity as a so-called enemy combatant in the “war on terror.”
“I hope the day comes,” said judge Navy Capt. Keith Allred, “when you return to your wife and your daughters and your country, Inshallah.”
The jury of military officers Wednesday found Hamdan guilty of providing material support to al-Qaida. Though not considered a war crime outside of the United States, Congress in 2006, as a result of Hamdan's case before the U.S. Supreme Court, amended military code to include such a charge.
Though Hamdan remains classified as an “enemy combatant,” that status is reviewed on a yearly basis and the 37-year-old Yemeni national could walk free before the end of the Bush administration.
