David Hicks admits that he had sympathies for the Taliban - and he further admits that he received military training while he was in Afghanistan - but at that time neither act broke any laws in either America or Australia.
Despite this, when he was captured by coalition forces in December 2001, he was shipped off to the Guantanamo Bay prison in Cuba and held there as a prisoner for five years without charge.
Eventually he became an embarrassment to the United States government - and a deal was set. He agreed to plead guilty to " material support for terrorism " - and was handed over to Australian authorities to serve a few months in an Adelaide prison - before being released.
The sticking point is that Hicks broke no laws in place when he spent time in Afghanistan - and the law he agreed to accept in return for his release is both retrospective - and probably illegal !
It seems Hicks is " the unlucky Australian ". He has spent more time in prison that the offence warranted and now he is caught under the " proceeds of crime " act from gaining any benefit from a book on his experiences.
About time his case went back to court for justice to apply !
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