Lawyer questions al-Qaida suspect’s competence before USS Cole bombing trial

A lawyer for Abd al-Rahim al-Nashiri, the suspected organizer of the 2000 al-Qaida attack on the USS Cole, is requesting a military court to assess his competence before the trial. The defense claims that Nashiri suffered a traumatic brain injury due to torture while in CIA custody. His trial is set to commence in a U.S. Navy base in Cuba, where he is a detainee; the proceedings could potentially last up to five weeks.

Captured in 2002, Nashiri endured waterboarding, beatings, and confinement in a crate for years in CIA custody at clandestine detention facilities. According to documents that were declassified in 2018, he was subjected to explicit forms of abuse, including being stripped naked and repeatedly slammed against walls, leaving him "moaning, shaking, and asking God to help him repeatedly."

Nashiri's attorney, Allison Ferber Miller, requested a delay in the proceedings until the military commission has the opportunity to evaluate his mental capacity. A defense psychiatrist who examined Nashiri in August concluded that he is "not competent," identifying a traumatic brain injury (TBI) resulting from CIA custody torture, a severe neurocognitive disorder, complex post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), and major depression.

Miller argued that Nashiri cannot comprehend the proceedings or assist his counsel and that the federal judge should delay the trial to allow the military commission a "meaningful opportunity" to determine Nashiri's competence. The military judge had ordered a competency evaluation, but left insufficient time for a meaningful hearing on Nashiri's fitness for trial.

The military judge has declined to stay the proceedings three times to resolve the issue. The trial has since been rescheduled to begin on October 26, according to Ronald Flesvig, a spokesman for the Office of Military Commissions at Guantanamo Bay.