Slate's Bizbox
jurisprudence: The law, lawyers, and the court.

Welcome Back to the Rule of LawBush makes good on a terrorism case (finally).

By Dahlia Lithwick
Posted Tuesday, Jan. 30, 2007, at 6:10 PM ET
Maher Arar. Click image to expand.

It speaks volumes about the topsy-turvy legal universe of the Bush administration that its mistakes are still trumpeted from the rooftops, while—on the rare occasion in which it does the right thing—no one seems to notice.

Compare the administration's handling of the Maher Arar affair last week with yesterday's proceedings in the trial of accused Iraqi insurgent Wesam al-Delaema. The first is a story of government error, abuse, and contempt for our allies in the war on terror. The second is a story of cooperation, pragmatic compromise, and respect for our allies. Maher Arar is still on the front pages, however, and Wesam al-Delaema is nearly buried.

Arar is a household name around the world. The Canadian software engineer was grabbed during a stopover at JFK Airport in 2002 and subjected to 10 months of "extraordinary rendition" in the care of our good friends in Syria. He was tortured until he falsely confessed, then sent home without explanation. A two-year inquiry by a prestigious Canadian commission determined that it had all been an awful mistake. The Bush administration refused to cooperate with that commission and still refuses to remove Arar from the American security watch list, claiming to have secret information that he's still dangerous although the Canadian authorities dispute that.

Last Friday, Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper offered Arar a public apology and $8.9 million in compensation while the Bush administration has blocked his lawsuit, citing the executive branch's "state secrets privilege." The conclusions of the Canadians, admitting his arrest was a mistake, are disregarded. No concessions, no apology, no transparency, and no regard for our Canadian allies. Arar wins a permanent entry under A in the world's Dictionary of Reasons To Hate Us.

Now consider the case of the Iraqi-born Dutch citizen Wesam al-Delaema. Yesterday, following a two-year battle over the terms of his extradition, Delaema pled not guilty to several conspiracy counts in a federal criminal court. He faces a public trial on six counts, including conspiring to kill American citizens abroad, to use a weapon of mass destruction, and to maliciously damage or destroy U.S. government property by means of an explosive. Delaema and his cronies, who call themselves the "Mujahideen from Fallujah," videotaped themselves planting bombs on a road used by American forces in Iraq, and the videotape was aired widely on television in the Arab world. The tape—which evidently includes the defendant bragging "this is not the first operation we carry out … . Their casualties have gone beyond your imagination," was found in his house in Amersfoort in a 2005 raid.

Before he was extradited to the United States, Delaema told the Dutch courts he was on the tape only because he'd been kidnapped while visiting Iraq for a wedding. He said he was forced to plant the bombs (and presumably gloat about it) or he would be beheaded. The claim rings slightly false in light of a Dutch television interview he gave in 2003 in which he swaggered, "I don't care if I myself die or not. I want to offer myself up for my land, for my people." His family claims that interview was "a joke."

VIEW AS SINGLE PAGE
Print This ArticlePRINTDiscuss this in The FrayDISCUSSEmail to a FriendE-MAIL
Share on FacebookPost to MySpace!Share with MixxDigg ThisShare with RedditShare with del.icio.usShare with FurlShare with Ma.gnolia.comShare with SphereShare with Stumble Upon
Dahlia Lithwick is a Slate senior editor.
Photograph of Maher Arar by Bill Grimshaw/Getty Images.
Join the Fray: our reader discussion forum
What did you think of this article?
POST A MESSAGE | READ MESSAGES
Washington Post
The Washington Post
OPINIONS
Over the Line
Harold Ford Jr. | I know what it's like to be smeared by your opponent.
: The Positive in Negative Ads
PLUS » Milbank: The President's Lullaby