Three leading civil liberties, human rights, and juvenile justice organizations today issued a letter urging Attorney General Eric Holder and Secretary of Defense Robert Gates to end military commission proceedings against Omar Khadr, the Canadian national apprehended in Afghanistan in 2002 when he was 15-years-old.

In light of developments over the last year, including the recent Canadian Supreme Court ruling that Khadr’s rights under the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms have been and continue to be violated, we write to you to highlight the need for action in Khadr’s case. Given that Khadr has spent nearly eight years in US custody, the interests of justice and the United States’ commitment to human rights demand that Khadr’s illegal and abusive detention cease.

The Yemeni government’s acknowledgment that an airstrike killed more than 42 civilians in December 2009 is a stark reminder of the need for careful targeting when using such counterterrorism measures.

US President Barack Obama has vocally promoted a human rights agenda. Now, his administration must translate his rhetoric into practice.

The long-awaited US Justice Department report on the conduct of Bush administration lawyers who provided a legal rationale for torture and other abusive interrogation techniques underscores the need for a full-scale investigation into post-9/11 detainee abuse.

The trial before Egypt’s state security court of 25 defendants accused of membership in a terrorist organization fails to protect the due process rights of defendants.

The Canadian government should immediately request the repatriation of Canadian citizen Omar Khadr from Guantanamo even though Canada’s Supreme Court did not order it to do so.

The case of Abdullah Sa'd should serve as a stark reminder to the US and its allies as they meet with Yemeni officials in London on Wednesday to craft a strategy to confront Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP), the group's Yemen-based franchise. If donors don't stringently monitor and condition their planned counterterrorism aid for Yemen, they may inadvertently become complicit in such abuse.