Appeals court has concerns over possible Gitmo video release

" A federal appeals court expressed concerns Thursday about the prospect of ordering the Obama administration to release graphic videos of a former Guantanamo Bay inmate being force-fed during a hunger strike.

"Judges hearing arguments in the long-running legal dispute considered whether any First Amendment interest in releasing the footage is outweighed by possible harm to national security.
The Associated Press and 15 other news organizations say the public has a constitutional right to see the videos.
The government says the tapes are classified and warns they could be used as propaganda by extremist groups to incite anti-American sentiment.

U.S. District Court Judge Gladys Kessler last year rejected the government's concerns as vague and speculative. She ordered the videos released with redactions to protect the identities of U.S. personnel, but the release has been on hold pending appeal.
The three-judge appeals panel gave no obvious indication of how they would rule. But at times, they pressed lawyers on both sides over how much deference courts should give to the government's interest in protecting national security.
The videos show former Guantanamo Bay prisoner Abu Wa'el Dhiab being forcibly removed from his cell, strapped to a restraining chair and force-fed his meals through a tube."

Appeals court has concerns over possible Gitmo video release