Democracy NOW! DN! - Citing the doctrine of Universal Jurisdiction, Spanish judge Baltasar Garzón has used the Spanish courts to investigate cases of torture, war crimes and other offenses around the world. In 1998, he ordered the arrest of former Chilean dictator, Augusto Pinochet, a move that led to Pinochet's arrest and detention in Britain. In 2003, Garzón indicted Osama bin Laden and dozens of other members of Al Qaeda. Garzón later attempted to indict six high-ranking members of the Bush administration for their role in authorizing torture at the U.S. military prison at Guantánamo Bay and overseas before the case was eventually dropped under U.S. pressure. While Garzón has long been one of the world's most feared judges, he is now facing his own legal battle. Last year he was indicted for exceeding his authority for launching an investigation into the disappearance of more than 100,000 civilians at the hands of supporters of Gen. Francisco Franco during the Spanish Civil War. Garzón was suspended as a judge in May 2010 and is facing three separate trials. Published with written permission from democracynow.org.
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