The Death Penalty in the OSCE Area which, given that human life was at stake, became unlawful under the Convention.”68 More precisely, the Court found that the imposition of the death sentence following an unfair trial by a court whose independence and impartiality were open to doubt amounted to inhuman treatment in violation of the prohibition of torture and other ill-treatment.69 In the United States, it is worth noting that, on 23 May  2016, the United States Supreme Court dismissed the conviction and death sentence of an African-American man due to an unfair trial, on the basis that prosecutors had excluded AfricanAmericans from the jury.70 The decision was partly based on an earlier, 1986 Supreme Court decision that laid out rules to prevent racial discrimination in jury selection. A related concern is the imposition of the death penalty by military commissions, especially on civilians. In the United States, the Guantanamo military commissions are military tribunals currently authorized by the Military Commissions Act of 2009 to prosecute detainees held in the United States Guantanamo Bay detainment camps. In light of concerns about the failure of the military commissions to meet international fair trial standards, as documented in the OSCE/ODIHR report on the human rights situation of detainees at Guantanamo,71 the carrying out of a death sentence following a conviction by such military commissions would be a violation of international humanitarian law, the right to life and the right to fair trial. Following the ECtHR’s jurisprudence, it would also constitute a violation of the prohibition of torture and other ill-treatment. Fair trial issues arise inter alia due to the fact that the accused, who has already been classified as an enemy combatant, is presented as an alien “unprivileged enemy belligerent” before facing trial. This designation indicates to the judge and to the members of the military commission that the accused engaged in hostilities against the United States or coalition partners, purposefully and materially supported hostilities and/or was part of al Qaeda before the trial even begins. Additionally, the length of detention may affect the presumption of innocence as pre-trial procedures have been known to last up to 12 years.72 The United Nations Working Group on Arbitrary Detention has concluded that military justice systems should be prohibited from imposing the death penalty under all circumstances (see E/ CN.4/1999/63, para. 80). Similarly, the European Union in its resolution on the death penalty stated that “military tribunals may not impose death sentences on civilians under any circumstances.” 68  Öcalan v. Turkey, op. cit., note 19. 69 Ibid., para. 175. 70  Supreme Court of the United States, Forster v. Chatman, 578 U.S. No. 14-8349, decided 23 May 2016, <https://www.supremecourt.gov/opinions/15pdf/14-8349_6k47.pdf>. 71  OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights, “Report on the Human Rights Situation of Detainees at Guantanamo”, 2015, <http://www.osce.org/odihr/198721>. 72  Ibid. para. 367. 21