Long Overdue: First Tribunal for Guantanamo Detainee

The first military tribunal has formally begun. The accused is Salim Ahmed Hamdan, Osama bin Laden's chauffeur:

Hamdan has said he earned a pittance for his family as bin Laden's driver before the Sept. 11 attacks, but he has denied involvement in terrorism. U.S. officials allege he served as the al-Qaida leader's bodyguard and delivered weapons to his operatives.

[...]

Swift [Hamdan's lawyer] says that Hamdan was a pilgrim who took a job at bin Laden's farm on his way to Tajikistan in 1996 or 1997, that he had no knowledge of bin Laden's activities and that he never took up arms against the United States.

The Pentagon alleges Hamdan, who is also known as Saqr al Jaddawi, was bin Laden's driver and bodyguard between February 1996 and Nov. 24, 2001.

The Pentagon also says he transported weapons to al-Qaida operatives, trained at an al-Qaida camp and drove in convoys that carried bin Laden. It does not say he took part in any specific acts of violence.

(Via Drudge)