A former state attorney general controversially fired under the Bush administration has been hired by President Barack Obama to oversee the prosecution of some of the men now detained at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba according to several news reports. Former New Mexico U.S. Attorney David Iglesias told a local news station in his state that he has been activated as a Navy lawyer to take over prosecutions against some of the Guantanamo Bay detainees. Where those prosecutions will take place, and against which detainees, remains unclear. Iglesias told the KRQE television news that he has started reviewing some of the cases, but that the bigger decisions about the prosecutions will be handled by the administration. “100 percent of what I'm doing is prosecuting terror cases out of Guantanamo,” he said. “As I understand it, the detention facilities that are currently holding about 250 or so alleged terrorists will be closed sometime in the next year or so, it's not going to be an immediate act,” he said. “I've prosecuted cases in state court, federal court and now in military court, so I'm just waiting for directions from the new administration,” Iglesias added in an interview with the Albuquerque television station. “It is the most sign set of orders that I've had in my 24 years of naval service,” he said. “I feel tremendously honored to be offered this position.”
