We Met Our Matching Fund!
We are proud to inform you that we were able to fully match the $50,000.00 Matching Grant.
In December 2024, we witnessed an unprecedented outpouring of financial generosity from you, our members and our supporters.
Thank you to all who donated so generously! You made it possible for us to keep going.
The message you sent is clear: We must continue following our mission to inspire the next generation with lessons learned by us after 9/11/'01 that are still relevant today and will serve us as we face the new year. Our struggle continues and our message of countering violence with nonviolence, opposing military solutions to conflict, of pursuing justice for those detained at Guantanamo and defending human rights for all.
Because of you, we will continue to raise our voices as we face the challenges ahead.
Thank You For Your Vision, Generosity And Support!
From the Rule of Law Committee:
Members of the Rule of Law Committee traveled to Guantánamo the second week of January expecting to witness Khalid Sheikh Mohammed plead guilty to planning and supporting the 9/11 terrorist attacks , as part of a pre-trial agreement (PTA). However, on the evening before his scheduled plea, the DC Circuit Court issued an administrative stay (a temporary pause), bringing our goal of judicial finality to yet another agonizing delay. For more details about the week, see our post, "More Confusion, Delay, and Family Member Anguish in the 9/11 Guantanamo Military Commission Case."
The DC Circuit Court heard oral arguments on January 28th on whether or not to issue a writ of mandamus as requested by the Department of Justice that would nullify the PTAs for Mr. Mohammed and two other 9/11 defendants. A writ of mandamus would reverse rulings by the 9/11 judge and the review court that upheld his ruling that the PTAs are binding and recognize former Secretary of Defense Austin’s revocation of the PTAs. |
With the help of pro bono attorneys, Nick Lewin and Ben Perotin, Peaceful Tomorrows members joined with other 9/11 victim family members (VFMs) who are not part of our organization to file an amicus brief with the DC Circuit Court, where we shared our perspectives in support of PTAs in the 9/11 case. To read the brief, please click here.
We are now waiting to hear how the judges in the DC Circuit Court will rule. Peaceful Tomorrows will continue to advocate for judicial finality in the 9/11 case, which we firmly believe can only be achieved through PTAs that include sentences that cannot be appealed.
On a parallel track, in the Guantánamo military commissions, Judge McCall heard final arguments regarding suppression for 9/11 defendant Ammar al-Baluchi, who currently has no PTA. Suppression, or the disqualification of statements made by defendants to FBI “clean teams” who interrogated the 9/11 defendants following their torture in CIA black sites, has been the central issue in the 9/11 case for nearly 13 years. Judge McCall has suggested he will rule on suppression within a month's time. For detailed background and analysis, read John Ryan, “Judge Set to Rule on Admissibility of 9/11 Confessions.” Coincidentally, the Court of Military Commissions Review just upheld a ruling by the judge in the USS Cole case, that the confessions the defendant, Mr. Nashiri, made to his FBI “clean team” are not admissible in a trial. |
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