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December 23, 2005
Will there be justice for Robert Stethem?
18 months ago, we printed an eyewitness account to Robert Stethem's brutal murder. He was killed by Hezbollah terrorists because he served in the U.S. military. Here's part of that account:I was one of the Navy Seabee Divers who had to endure the pain of hearing and seeing SW2 (DV) Robert Stethem go through the brutality of terrorism on June 14, 1985. It has been 19 years since that day. I will NEVER FORGET what he sacraficed. I was lucky/blessed to be able to return home after 17 days of captivity. The mental and physical pains which we all endured during that time will heal, but will also be forever etched into our memory. Bobby was a close friend who is deeply missed by many. Let us all remember what has been taken away from us by EVIL and call it what it is. Many people ask me the question of, are we doing the right thing in waging a world wide war on terror, as if I am some type of an expert on the topic. I can only respond by saying,"If you can answer that question buy saying NO, you have not personally felt the pain of the enemy. Only a casual observer can say that we are doing the wrong thing, someone who lives in a bubble". Let us not just remember the events of Sept. 11,2001, but remember all of what has happened over the course of many years. Remember we are not the bad guys in this fight. It is right for us to take a stand and support the cause of freedom and to do our best in preventing these acts of barbarism. I have no doubts that if Robert Stethem were still alive what his answer would be.Stethem's killers - Mohammed Ali Hamadi and Hasan Izz-Al-Din, escaped after the kidnapping. Hamadi was later captured, tried, convicted and sentenced to life in prison in Germany. German courts refused a U.S. request for extradition because Hamadi might have faced the death penalty if he were tried by U.S. courts. So, what does a life sentence for terrorism mean in Germany? Earlier this month, Hamadi was set free from his German prison cell and flown back to Lebanon. And, according to a post on an Arlington National Cemetary website, Stethem's parents, Richard and Patricia, continue to press for Hamadi's extradition. They have not forgotten. Patricia Stethem will visit her son's grave at Arlington this Christmas, with a message . . . "We'll be after him. We won't let it rest." Hopefully, this time, America will also stand behind them and this extradition request will not rest until Hamadi and Izz-Al-Din stand before a judge in the United States.
Posted by Deb at December 23, 2005 01:55 PM
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Posted by: Emma Heming at January 10, 2012 01:58 PM