I'm sure any of the Canadians here know what I'm talking about, but for everyone else:

Omar was a 15 year old boy that came from a Canadian family with terrorist links. He was found at the age of 15 engaged in a firefight in Afghanistan (2003) and accused of killing an American soldier. He was arrested for that killing and brought to Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. The Canadian government has done nothing to help this child soldier (Under the Geneva convention as well as international law) and the Americans have interrogated and held him for the last 5 years. Omar was also an unwilling subscriber of the 'frequent flyer' program at Guantanamo - that is, every three hours a prisoner is moved around the base in order to cause sleep deprivation. They did this to a (then 16 year old) boy.

When CSIS agents showed up at Guantanamo Omar was happy that the Canadian government had finally arrived to take him home - in accordance with International law. Instead, CSIS under the direction of the Harper government continued to interrogate Omar on behalf of the Canadian government to the point where he suffered a complete mental breakdown..seen on the videotaped interrogation footage pulling his hair out and screaming 'help me, help me'.

Since I was a boy I have been taught that Canadians were seen in the International community as peacekeepers and a people who could be trusted as tolerant and respectful. The Harper government has done more to destroy this image than any government in the past 20 years (at least). How can we, how can Any of us support our governments when they are willing to torture a 15 y/o boy - break international law and the Geneva conventions...It makes me sick to my stomach that there is not more outrage about this and that it's looking like we (here in Canada) will be in for another 4 years of Conservative rule...

He was the first person under the age of 18 EVER, to be held for war crimes. Its horrible bush/bush administration has managed to completely dodge the law. If you don't know how they did this, terrorists are not war criminals. They are not POW's, nothing. Therefor we have to create all new war crime laws. The geneva convention, and any other law doesnt apply anymore. I hope a country in Europe starts the ball rolling again to create new laws. If the US goes to war with Iran, all they have to say is the people apposing them are terrorists, there enemy combatants, therefor they are not protected under any international law. Doesnt matter if there following orders, there children, nothing.

It's clear why bush did this, well congress passed it so the US government did it. There protecting themselves from war crime charges, torture being one of them. Every other country calls what there doing torture, theres no debate in Europe or Canada. Everybody knows torture doesn't work. Who knows, WMD, yellow cake in Iraq etc. was most likely information obtained from torture.

Its retarded though, I could see If Canadians didnt want terrorists in our courts. Fuck, we just let the only person convicted of charges related to the air india bombings out on bail. But fuck, theres no judge in the US that would go easy on a terrorist. Throw him in the general population for life and see how long he lasts. They even have the death penalty, so aside from government officials torturing him, he's fucked!

He deserves his stay in Guantanamo, because he killed an American soldier. Everyone knows that when you kill an American and get caught you will be horrifically screwed no matter your age or sex.

Lets get the Liberals back in power - they might have gave some kickbacks to some greasy Frenchmen but at least they aren't as terrifying /willing to flout international law and torture some children as the Harper regime obviously is...

They should of hung the little motherfucker a long time ago. I'm tired of seeing my tax dollars wasted on keeping some raghead canadian alive who killed an American GI. Fucking whiney liberals and foreigners bitching about some terrorist being 'interrogated' to harshly. Guess what people, where at war: There are no rules in warfare, never have been, never will. If he is old enough to fire a rifle or throw a grenade then he should be held to the same standards as an adult and his punishment should fit the crime.
Bring back burning at the stake and lets see how many of these motherfuckers will scream jihad

But was he old enough to have made his own mind up about what he was doing? Kids who have assertive parents and family members to what they are told, not what they think is right. Although in this instance consider this a devils advocate post; becuase I believe at 15 he should have been mentally developed enough to make up his own mind. It's more something to consider if/when even younger kids are caught up in this kind of situation.

By International law and the confines of the Geneva convention there is no different between a child soldier at 8 years old and a child soldier at 15 years old. You might not agree with this but this is how it is. Out governments are willfully disregarding International Law and the very agreements they signed in order to violate the rights of this boy.

Frankly I could care less about little Omar. If your family is going to actively endorse/sponsor terrorism and you go and kill an American solider you are going to be punished.

But is that the fault of the Canadian government or an oversight within the Geneva Convention?

So why do you care about him then?

Obviously the fault of the government I should think. The entire point of law is that everyone has to follow what is written, if the strong people can disregard the law when it suits them then why bother having laws at all?

If we continue doing things like this in order to win the War on Terror than are we that much better than the terrorists?