Procedural Orders in Two Habeas Cases

The D.C. Circuit has handed down procedural orders in two Guantanamo detention cases. The first grants a joint motion regarding Friday's oral argument in Khairkhwa v. Obama.  The argument session will be open to the public, with a classified hearing to follow if necessary. The second concerns Obaydulla v. Obama, in which the detainee has petitioned for re-hearing en banc.  Acting on its own motion, the court of appeals has ordered the government to respond to Obaydullah's petition.  (The opposing party usually cannot respond to a re-hearing request unless the court says otherwise.)  That's a good sign of interest in one or more of the detainee's arguments---though, of course, it is not an indication one way or the other about whether the full court will hear the case once more. What in the petition might interest a few judges on the court of appeals, if only a little bit?  Well, the petition does challenge Latif ---both that ruling's application in Obaydullah's case, and its compatibility withBoumedieneand, most importantly, other detention decisions by the D.C. Circuit. . .