In language so harsh and denunciatory as to be nearly unprecedented, Judge Henry H. Kennedy of the DC Circuit has ordered the release "forthwith" of War on Terra prisoner Mohamed Mohamed Hassan Odaini, excoriating the Obama Justice Department for pursuing a case against a man that "respondents themselves have repeatedly concluded [] is not part of Al Qaeda," even while "distort[ing]" and "misrepresent[ing]" evidence, advancing arguments that are "simply unreasonable," driven by a "refus[al] to deviate from a predetermined conclusion," and asking of the Court a resolution that would "render meaningless the principle of law that places the burden of proof on respondents."
Respondents have kept a young man from Yemen in detention in Cuba from age eighteen to age twenty-six. They have prevented him from seeing his family and denied him the opportunity to complete his studies and embark on a career. The evidence before the Court shows that holding Odaini in custody at such great cost to him has done nothing to make the United States more secure. There is no evidence that Odaini has any connection to Al Qaeda. Consequently, his detention is not authorized by the AUMF. The Court therefore emphatically concludes that Odaini's motion must be granted.