Bradley Manning supporters march down Market Street in SF the day after the announcement of Bradley's Pretrial Hearing

On Monday of this week, the Military announced that Bradley Manning’s Pretrial Hearing will begin December 16th. After 18 months of pretrial confinement, this will be the first time that Bradley will have the opportunity to hear the case against him in court. The Hearing will take place in Fort Meade, MD, outside the DC area. The military has confirmed that “If convicted of all charges, Manning would face a maximum punishment… of confinement for life.”

Saturday, December 17th is not only the second day of the hearing, but also Bradley’s 24th birthday. We’re declaring this date our International Solidarity Day of Action, where people will join together in support of Bradley outside the gates of Fort Meade and around the world. Read our event announcement here and our press release here. We’ve also launched a new website where people can register solidarity actions to receive materials and other support: events.bradleymanning.org

As soon as the news was announced on Bradley’s lawyer’s blog, the Bradley Manning Support Network organized a press call to discuss the developments. Listen here to Pentagon Papers whistle-blower Daniel Ellsberg, attorney Kevin Zeese, and Courage to Resist Project Director Jeff Paterson discuss the issue. Listen to the call.

The UK Guardian covered some of the first details about how the legal proceedings may play out, including that defense lawyer David Coombs has planned to call as many as 50 witnesses during the Pretrial Hearing period.

The Baltimore Sun provided a general overview of the case to date.

A New York Times blogpost went into more details about the legal proceedings of military court as they apply in this case.

Jane Hamsher of Firedoglake appeared on the Alyona Show to discuss the developments: