What is the "wokest" Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau up to lately?
Awarding a convicted terrorist millions of dollars, apparently.
Yes, really. Canadian-born Omar Khadr spent 10 years at Guantanamo Bay after killing a U.S. soldier in Afghanistan in 2002. Now, he and his lawyers have sought $20 million in a civil suit and will receive at least half of that (around $8 million in U.S. dollars).
Khadr and his lawyers allege that he was unfairly convicted and tortured at Guantanamo Bay. Khadr was 15 years old when he murdered Special Ops Sgt. First Class Christopher Speer and wounded Sgt. Layne Morris, costing him his right eye in a grenade blast. Thanks to U.S. legislation enacted the year before in response to 9/11, this was considered a war crime.
Khadr plead guilty to the murder of Sgt. Morris in 2010, but is trying to appeal this plea, citing "duress." His interrogation was carried out by Canadian officials and the information handed over to the United States. He spent 10 years in Guantanamo Bay before returning to Canada to serve out the rest of his sentence.
Now, not only will he receive millions of dollars from Canada, he will also get an apology.
Jason Kenney, the former Conservative defense minister, called the decision "odious." So what did Prime Minister Trudeau have to say? Not much. When asked about the decision at a press conference, he deflected to the "judicial process":
“There is a judicial process underway that has been underway for a number of years now, and we are anticipating, like I think a number of people are, that the judicial process is coming to its conclusion.”
Unlike the Canadian government, Sgt. Morris does not think Khadr is a victim. He said of Khadr's successful lawsuit:
"I'm very familiar with the Khadr family. This is the third generation of Khadrs that owe humanity an apology, not the other way around. I shudder to think what $10 million (Canadian) in the hands of an avowed and accomplished terrorist will do."
Understandably, Sgt. Layne and Sgt. Speer's widow are not happy with this outcome. The two filed a wrongful death law suit against Khadr in 2014 to combat any possible suits Khadr might file in the U.S. The two were awarded $134.2 million in damages in 2015.
Morris also said that Khadr should thank the U.S. special forces for being alive, saying, "[Khadr's] reward is being alive because an American medic like Speer used his special skills to keep him alive."
In an interview with the Toronot Star, Khadr described his alleged mistreatment at Guantanamo, claiming he questioned his jailers' mental state.
"You can only imagine what this guy is going through. The thing is, if a person can inflict pain on another person and find pleasure in that person must be going through a lot of problems," he said.
I'm sure Sgt. Layne wonders the same thing about the man who killed his comrade.
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