This case raises important issues concerning the Crown prerogative over foreign affairs. As the Supreme Court of Canada ruled in an earlier case involving Mr. Khadr, 'it would not be appropriate for the Court to give direction as to the diplomatic steps necessary to address the breaches of Mr. Khadr's Charter rights.' Omar Khadr faces very serious charges, including murder, attempted murder, conspiracy, material support for terrorism, and spying.

Khadr has been held at Guantanamo Bay [JURIST news archive] since his 2002 capture by US forces in Afghanistan when he was 15 years old. He is facing murder and terrorism charges [JURIST report] for allegedly throwing a grenade that killed one US soldier and injured another, although he has repeatedly denied the accusations. Khadr sought judicial review from the Federal Court following the Supreme Court's decision in January that Canadian government could continue to refuse to request his repatriation [JURIST reports] from Guantanamo, even though the judges unanimously agreed that the government had breached Khadr's Charter rights. According to the ruling, Canadian officials questioned Khadr even though they knew he was being indefinitely detained and with knowledge that he was subjected to three weeks sleep deprivation by US authorities. In May, a UN official called on the US and Canada to respect international conventions [JURIST report] and release Khadr into Canadian custody. The UN claimed that since Khadr was 15 when he was captured, his detention would fall in line with the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child [text], which has been ratified by Canada, but not the US.