Military commissions are specialized military tribunals the Department of Defense convenes (under the Military Commissions Act) to try ‘‘alien unprivileged enemy belligerents’’ for violations of the law of war and related offenses. They differ from U.S. civilian courts and courts‑martial in jurisdiction (commissions try non‑U.S. enemy fighters and certain war‑time offenses), composition (commission members are military officers rather than civilian juries), procedural and evidentiary rules (commissions operate under the MCA and tailored rules that can differ from federal criminal rules and from courts‑martial), and appellate paths (review through military‑commission review courts and limited federal appellate review rather than the normal federal trial/court‑of‑appeals structure).
Encep Nurjaman (also known as Riduan bin Isomuddin or “Hambali”) is an Indonesian national held at Guantánamo Bay. He has been formally charged by the Convening Authority and referred to a military commission on multiple counts related to the 2002 Bali bombing and 2003 Jakarta (JW Marriott) bombing, including charges such as conspiracy and crimes in violation of the law of war (see the military commission charge sheets/specifications for details).
The 2002 bombing was the October 12, 2002 attack in Bali (Kuta and nearby areas) that killed 202 people and wounded hundreds; the 2003 attack was the August 5, 2003 suicide bombing at the JW Marriott hotel in Jakarta that killed 12 and injured dozens. Both were large Islamist terrorist attacks in Indonesia with major civilian casualties and national/international impact.
DOD advisories and Office of Military Commissions schedules indicate pretrial proceedings in cases like United States v. Encep Nurjaman typically occur at the Guantánamo Bay military commissions facilities; specific dates/times for the referenced advisory were published by the Department of Defense on Feb. 4, 2026. Access beyond accredited media is limited: military commissions are not ordinary public trials—attendance is subject to security, space, and accreditation rules and some portions may be closed for classified material.
Media must apply for accreditation through the Department of Defense/Office of Military Commissions media procedures: typical requirements include submitting press credentials, a completed media application, personal identification, and agreeing to security and operational rules by published deadlines; accredited media are screened and given specific instructions for travel/onsite rules. The DOD/OMC media‑invitation advisory linked in the announcement contains the contact and application instructions for that hearing.
The Department of Defense (War Department advisory) handles military commissions matters because military commissions are convened and run by the Department of Defense under the Military Commissions Act; within DoD the Office of Military Commissions and the Convening Authority (part of the DoD/OMC structure) manage referrals, charges, and media matters. The Department of Justice is not the convening authority for military commissions.