[JURIST] A US military commission jury has convicted [DOD press release] alleged al Qaeda media director Ali Hamza Ahmad Suliman al Bahlul [DOD materials] of conspiring with al Qaeda, soliciting murder, and providing material support for terrorism. The jury reached a verdict [JURIST report] on Friday, but it was not unsealed until Monday morning, when al Bahlul was present in the courtroom at the Guantanamo Bay [JURIST news archive] prison. The jury, composed of nine US military officers, deliberated for only four hours Friday before reaching its decision. Sentence is pending. Al Bahlul is only the second detainee to go on trial at Guantanamo and the second to be convicted since the prison opened in 2002. Reuters has more.

Al Bahlul, a 39-year old Yemeni citizen, went on trial [JURIST report] at Guantanamo last Monday. Alleged to have been Osama bin Laden's personal assistant and media secretary, al Bahlul was charged [JURIST report] in February, accused of researching the financial impact of the 9/11 attacks and releasing the "martyr wills" of 9/11 hijackers Muhammed Atta and Ziad al Jarrah as propaganda videos. He vowed earlier this year to boycott proceedings against him, saying he would attend only when a verdict was handed down or he was sentenced. At his request, his lawyer did not offer any defense. Al Bahlul faces a sentence of up to life imprisonment.