Awlaqi killing reignites US debate on rights

The killing of US-born Al-Qaeda cleric Anwar al-Awlaqi has rekindled the debate over how far Washington can go in hunting down and assassinating alleged terror suspects, especially American citizens.Awlaqi, killed in Yemen with several other suspected militants, had been at the center of a court case filed last year challenging the US governments right to target its citizens for assassination which highlighted questions about constitutional rights.President Barack Obama said the killing of Awlaqi was a major blow to Al-Qaeda, and marked a milestone in the broader effort to defeat the terror network.White House spokesman Jay Carney said Awlaqis role in Al-Qaeda has been well established and his group was a definite threat to the United States.Many US lawmakers and other Americans cheered the news of Awlaqis death, but civil rights backers said the case raises serious questions.Glenn Greenwald, a prominent civil liberties lawyer and commentator, said there had been no effort to indict Awlaqi on any crimes and that there was substantial doubt about his involvement in any crimes.He was simply ordered killed by the president: his judge, jury and executioner, Greenwald wrote on Salon.com.Whats most amazing is that its citizens will not merely refrain from objecting, but will stand and cheer the US governments new power to assassinate their fellow citizens, far from any battlefield, literally without a shred of due process, he added.Last year, civil liberties groups filed a lawsuit on behalf of the clerics father, Nasser al-Awlaqi, saying it was unconstitutional for the CIA to order the death of a US citizen without due process.A judge dismissed the case without ruling on the merit of the suit, but noted it raises serious constitutional issues.Can (the president) order the assassination of a US citizen without first affording him any form of judicial process whatsoever, based on the mere assertion that he is a dangerous member of a terrorist organization? US District Judge John Bates wrote in December.Pardiss Kebriaei, an attorney at the the Center Constitutional Rights who worked on the lawsuit, said if Awlaqi were indeed killed by US forces or with their help, it would be illegal.Republican Representative Ron Paul, who seeks his partys nomination to take on Obama in the November 2012 election, was sharply critical.He was born here, ABC television quoted Paul as saying. He is an American citizen. He was never tried or charged with any crime. Nobody knows if he killed anyone.Last year, a group of US lawmakers unveiled legislation to strip Americans thought to have joined extremist groups like Al-Qaeda of their citizenship. But the effort was criticized by some who said this appeared to lack due process.