The US colonel judging the case of Omar Khadr has told the Pentagon it had no authority to fire Khadr's defence lawyer, Navy Lt. Commander Bill Kuebler, according to a report published today in the National Post.

Kuebler, who has strongly defended Khadr, is therefore back on the case.

The story says Kuebler had been fired by Air Force Colonel Peter Masciola after a public dispute between the two officers.

Crawford Kilian is a contributing editor of The Tyee.