B.C. man leaves money in will for Canadian child soldier Omar Khadr

SALT SPRING ISLAND, B.C. – A British Columbia man says he’s leaving Omar Khadr some money in his will, even though he thinks the Canadian war criminal wouldn’t approve of his lifestyle as a gay atheist.

Jack Hallam of Salt Spring Island says 26-year-old Khadr could put the money towards funding his education now that he’s been repatriated to Canada after being held at a U.S. military prison in Guantanamo Bay for a decade.

Hallam says he has set aside $700 for Khadr because he thinks the Toronto-born man has been treated badly by both the American and Canadian governments.

Hallam says he has spoken to Khadr’s tutor in Alberta and may increase the amount of money he leaves the former child soldier.

In October 2010, Khadr pleaded guilty before a military commission to five war crimes, including murder in violation of the rules of war. In return, he was given a further eight years behind bars but allowed to return to Canada to serve out the rest of his sentence.

He was brought back to Canada on Sept. 29, a move that infuriated a former American solder who was partly blinded in the 2002 firefight during which Khadr was captured.

Khadr’s transfer also prompted hundreds of Canadians to donate money to the family of the U.S. soldier Khadr pleaded guilty to killing.