Fifth Estate covering Tukeh tonight

[Methylamine]

http://www.cbc.ca/beta/news/world/somal ... -1.3424262

Alleged Somali war criminal first exposed by the fifth estate now in landmark U.S. case
Alleged war criminal sought refuge in Canada before being deported to U.S.

Lisa Mayor • Arianna Ongaro • Rachel Houlihan • CBC News
9 Hours Ago
Yusuf Abdi Ali
Yusuf Abdi Ali, also known as Col. Tukeh, is alleged to have tortured, killed and maimed hundreds of people under Somalia's then-dictator Mohamed Siad Barre. (CBC)
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An alleged war criminal from Somalia, first exposed by the fifth estate in 1992, now finds himself in the middle of a landmark human rights lawsuit in the U.S.

Yusuf Abdi Ali, also known as Colonel Tukeh, was first investigated by the fifth estate in 1992 for allegations that he executed, tortured and maimed countless people during Somalia's civil war. He was living in Toronto at the time of the original broadcast.

Just days after the fifth estate's story aired, Ali was deported back to the U.S. — his original port of entry.

However, despite the allegations made in the fifth estate program, Canadian authorities never pursued Ali for war crimes.

Watch "After the Cameras Went Away" tonight on the fifth estate, 9 p.m., 9:30 NT
the fifth estate documentary "Crimes Against Humanity" showed that before working as a security guard in Toronto and trying to make Canada his new home, Ali wore a much different uniform.

He was a commander in the brutal civil strife fought by Somali dictator Mohamed Siad Barre and his army against their own people.

Watch the fifth estate's "Crimes Against Humanity," aired in 1992
Almost a quarter-century later, it turns out that Ali is still living in the U.S., working in the Washington area.

He is at the heart of a lawsuit in the U.S. where he is being sued for war crimes in Somalia, specifically for allegations brought forward by Farhan Warfaa, who says he was the target of a brutal interrogation by Ali in December 1987.

Ali "was in the room directing the questioning while [Warfa] was tortured and violently beaten," said Tara Lee, Warfaa's lawyer. "At the conclusion of the torture and beating, [Ali] shot him five times at point blank range while he was chained and restrained."

Tara Lee
Tara Lee is the lawyer for Farhan Warfaa, a Somalia man who says he was beaten and tortured by Ali and others back when the Siad Barre regime was still in power. (CBC)
Incredibly, Warfaa survived and is now seeking justice in a U.S. court from the man he says pulled the trigger in Somalia.

At issue in the pending lawsuit is whether an American court is the proper place for something that allegedly happened so long ago and so far away.

Should the case proceed, Ali may soon find himself the public face of what would be an historic decision to deny war criminals safe haven in the U.S.

If the case is not allowed to continue, it might signal an easy pass for war criminals, Lee warns.

"If our courts have an interest, it's in adjudicating the crimes of criminals that have chosen to live here," Lee argues.

Ali's lawyer, Joseph Peter Drennan, says Ali rejects the charges of murder and torture, and he describes Ali's life as "blameless."

"Mr. Ali is an ordinary individual who lives here in Northern Virginia with a family and who hasn't gotten as much as a parking ticket since he's got here," Drennan said.

It is a response similar to the one Ali gave in a 1992 interview with the fifth estate.

"The story you have got is completely, entirely, perfectly and absolutely partial," Ali told the fifth estate in the original documentary. "It's false. Totally baseless."

Background

In the early 1990s, Canada became a safe haven for Somalis when the civil war erupted, following the overthrow of Siad Barre's military regime in 1991.

Most refugees were legitimate, but the fifth estate investigation found that some who had reportedly done the dictator's dirty work were accepted as well.

SOMALIA
A boy stands on the ruins of the former Somali parliament building in the capital Mogadishu. Somalia has been mired in violence, and lacking effective central government, since the 1991 overthrow of military dictator Siad Barre. (Feisal Omar/Reuters)
Prior to the fall of the Siad Barre regime, for which he had worked, Ali went to the U.S. on a diplomatic visa where he received American military training.

When the Somali regime fell in 1991, he came to Canada, claiming to be a refugee.

When the fifth estate went to northern Somalia in 1992, it seemed everyone had a story about torture and gruesome killing allegedly on Ali's watch, including stories about people being tied to trees and burned alive.

One woman described the scene of her brother being dragged behind a military vehicle until he was "shredded to pieces."

The Somali journalist who worked with the fifth estate on the 1992 documentary, stands by the original broadcast. Mohamed Urdoh traveled to Gibeley, Somali, with the CBC crew and translated the stories of victims and the eye witness accounts.

"They were telling the truth. They actually show their wounds," says Urdoh. "They were telling the truth. No doubt."

Media placeholderPlay Media
Crimes Against Humanity 47:18
Before the war, Ali was a graduate of the Pentagon's program for foreign officers. At the time of the armed uprising against Siad Barre in the late 1980s, America was braced by the Cold War and, in an effort to keep a country like Somalia away from Soviet influence, it was willing to support and arm Somalia's military dictatorship, despite its blatant disregard for human rights.

The U.S. military selected and trained the best and brightest of its allies — Ali being one of them.

The case involving Ali is now with the 4th Circuit Court of Appeals in Virginia and a decision is expected soon.

The original episode in 1992: http://www.cbc.ca/player/play/2682694534/

[Rambie]

It's about time. >>>>>>>

Morgan is next.

[JSL3000]

Great job.

Let's take out all these war criminals one by one.

[cheifaqilbari]

Tuke should have been hanged and killed long time ago for crimes against humanity. Never that dofaar is fighting courts and imprisonment on his last day on earth. Doofar faqash hell is waiting for u.

[Bandit]

Ali "was in the room directing the questioning while [Warfa] was tortured and violently beaten," said Tara Lee, Warfaa's lawyer. "At the conclusion of the torture and beating, [Ali] shot him five times at point blank range while he was chained and restrained."

Fake cash grab scam.

[Methylamine]

https://youtu.be/PFmnWe6bHfs

CBC News

[original dervish]

HSM torpedoed all these fake iidoor scams years ago.
This is just a frivolous lawsuit........ten-a-penny in the US.

[Rambie]

Ali "was in the room directing the questioning while [Warfa] was tortured and violently beaten," said Tara Lee, Warfaa's lawyer. "At the conclusion of the torture and beating, [Ali] shot him five times at point blank range while he was chained and restrained."

Fake cash grab scam.

[Rambie]

HSM torpedoed all these fake iidoor scams years ago.
This is just a frivolous lawsuit........ten-a-penny in the US.

Your boy is going to trial, wither u like it or not.

[Rambie]

Reer Gabiely must be feeling like.

[original dervish]

Don't mistake me for someone who gives a f*@k.
As long as the Somali patriot never see's the inside of a cell we all cool.

[mahoka]

Don't mistake me for someone who gives a f*@k.
As long as the Somali patriot never see's the inside of a cell we all cool.

as long as i own you you aint got nothing to worry about.

[Bandit]

Looking at the case more than likely he will win

On April 25, 2014, the case was finally reopened. CJA and pro bono co-counsel DLA Piper filed an amended complaint on May 9, 2015. On May 31, 2014, Tukeh’s defense filed a renewed motion to dismiss on issues including immunity, political question, and statute of limitations grounds.  Notably, Tukeh did not present any argument based on Kiobel.  In a surprising move, however, Judge Brinkema announced at the hearing on July 25, 2014 that she would dismiss all of Mr. Warfaa’s Alien Tort Statute (ATS) claims on Kiobel grounds, without argument or briefing from either side. She also denied Tukeh’s motion to dismiss our client’s Torture Victim Protection Act (TVPA) claims. 

Just find a way to dismiss the tvpa claims

[Rambie]

Don't mistake me for someone who gives a f*@k.
As long as the Somali patriot never see's the inside of a cell we all cool.

[Rambie]

Looking at the case more than likely he will win

On April 25, 2014, the case was finally reopened. CJA and pro bono co-counsel DLA Piper filed an amended complaint on May 9, 2015. On May 31, 2014, Tukeh’s defense filed a renewed motion to dismiss on issues including immunity, political question, and statute of limitations grounds.  Notably, Tukeh did not present any argument based on Kiobel.  In a surprising move, however, Judge Brinkema announced at the hearing on July 25, 2014 that she would dismiss all of Mr. Warfaa’s Alien Tort Statute (ATS) claims on Kiobel grounds, without argument or briefing from either side. She also denied Tukeh’s motion to dismiss our client’s Torture Victim Protection Act (TVPA) claims. 

Just find a way to dismiss the tvpa claims

That was 2014, ain't gonna happen.