President Bush designated a former Peoria resident facing fraud charges as an “enemy combatant” Monday, with administration officials saying the Bradley University graduate came to Chicago one day before Sept. 11, 2001, to coordinate Al Qaeda operatives for a second round of attacks. Bush’s decision in the case of Ali Saleh Kahlah Al-Marri, a 37-year-old Qatari national, marks a turning point in the administration’s promise to use whatever means are at its disposal to fight Al Qaeda, and seems certain to spark controversy from civil libertarians. Under Bush’s order, Al-Marri became the first person facing criminal charges in the United States to be pulled out of the civilian justice system and placed into military custody. The move strips him of constitutional rights, including his access to a lawyer. A legal challenge to the president’s order is already in the works, said Lee Smith, one of Al-Marri’s defense lawyers. He said Al-Marri was removed from a Peoria jail and flown Monday to a naval brig in Charleston, S.C. Full Story
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