Please bear in mind also that he left the country long before the clash between the United States and the Taleban was an issue; he did not join an enemy force after the U.S. declared it an enemy as far as I have seen. So the question is WHEN he joined the Taleban. There is also a critical issue about the legal nature of treason when a war has been declared only by executive mandate, and not by legislative act. It is absolutely true that a warlike condition existed; but in terms of law the question of what war is and when it officially occurs has to be answered. It is possible the "cult" he joined was a civilian body entirely when he got drawn into it, rather than a military body.

All these points need legal clarification, especially the question of whether he actually legally renounced his citizenship. If he did, and did so before the "state of warlike relationships against terrorism" was defined (around 15 September I think), then it is even harder to see how treason enters into the equation.

I would like to see him forgiven his foolishness if only for his parents' sake; but I don't have the details of what he has actually done in specific. That makes it hard to see the rights of the matter, doesn't it?

A