Gitmo detainee tribunals under scrutiny

GUANTANAMO BAY, Cuba, June 3 (UPI) -- The system of U.S. military tribunals set up to try terrorism suspects at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, will be put to its biggest test this week, analysts say.

That's because trials for five high-level prisoners, including alleged Sept. 11, 2001, mastermind Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, are set to start Thursday and observers from around the world will be watching to see if the men, who could receive death sentences, can get a fair trial under system. It will the be first time the tribunals have taken anyone to trial and legal analysts are suggesting alternatives, USA Today reported Tuesday.

The newspaper says four other ways of dealing with the suspected al-Qaida members are being widely discussed, including using U.S. federal courts to hold the trials; using the military courts-martial system; establishing a new "national security court"; or holding prisoners until the "war on terror" ends.

"It's dishonest to go through the charade and pretend we're doing something legitimate," John Hutson, dean of the Franklin Pierce Law Center in New Hampshire and a former Navy judge advocate told USA Today.

Hearings before the the Senate Judiciary Committee to once again address the tribunal system for alleged terrorists have been set for Wednesday.