Convicted supporter of al-Qaeda to be freed in Australia

Convicted supporter David Hicks will walk free today after being held captive in Guantanamo Bay and Australia for nearly seven years, though the Australian government has imposed strict controls on his movements.

Hicks the first person convicted at a US war-crimes trial since World War II when he pleaded guilty in March to providing support to al-Qaeda.

Hicks captured in 2001 by the US-backed Northern Alliance in Afghanistan, where he had been fighting with the Taliban. He was sent to the US base in Guantanamo Bay, where he spent more than five years without trial.

A US military tribunal sentenced Hicks -- a Muslim convert who has since renounced the faith -- to seven years in prison, with all but nine months being suspended, after he confessed to aiding al-Qaeda during the US-led invasion of Afghanistan following Sept. 11, 2001.

Under plea bargain, Hicks was allowed to serve the remainder of his sentence at Yatala prison in his hometown of Adelaide, but was ordered to remain silent about any alleged abuse he suffered while in custody.

Under plea deal, Hicks forfeited rights to appeal his conviction and also agreed to a gag order that bans him from speaking with the media for a year from his sentencing date, but rights groups have questioned whether the gag order can be enforced in Australia, where Hicks has not been convicted of any crime.

Hicks, who has been described as depressed and anxious by family members, was not expected to speak to the media upon his release.