US President George W Bush has decided that six al-Qaeda suspects in US custody can be tried before a military tribunal, US officials have said.
It marks the first time Mr Bush has decided any terror suspects can be tried in a military court.
A decision on whether they will actually be tried will be made at a later date and will depend on moves by the suspects and their lawyers, the Associated Press news agency quoted an unnamed official as saying.
It is not clear who the six suspects are or where they are being held, although correspondents say at least some of them are believed to be among those held at the US' Guantanamo Bay naval base in Cuba.
Terror suspects detained in the US war on terror and held at Guantanamo Bay have been designated "unlawful combatants" without the right to a trial, causing concern among human rights organisations.
Mr Bush had already ordered the military to prepare for trials of suspects who are not United States citizens - and made it clear the death penalty could be applied.
Cases examined
About 680 fighters allied with the former Taleban regime in Afghanistan and members of Osama Bin Laden's al-Qaeda network are being held in Guantanamo Bay.
Last month, trials for terror suspects who are not US citizens moved a step closer when the Pentagon named a chief prosecutor and defence counsel for cases dealt with by military commissions.
The new chief prosecutor, Colonel Fred Borch, said he was looking at more than 10 cases.
Some civil liberties activists fear al-Qaeda and Taleban suspects will not get a fair hearing, and have attacked provisions such as the right to closed hearings when secret evidence is given.
Colonel Will Gunn, the defence counsel, said he would push for trials to be as open as possible, saying the US would be judged on the fairness of the process.
Officials at Guantanamo Bay have reportedly begun planning for an execution chamber, should the death sentence be imposed.
The final decision on whether to carry out executions would rest with President Bush.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/americas/3043332.stm
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Probability of a fair trial for a political prisoner by a military junta court?
1/1000 against is about right.
It marks the first time Mr Bush has decided any terror suspects can be tried in a military court.
A decision on whether they will actually be tried will be made at a later date and will depend on moves by the suspects and their lawyers, the Associated Press news agency quoted an unnamed official as saying.
It is not clear who the six suspects are or where they are being held, although correspondents say at least some of them are believed to be among those held at the US' Guantanamo Bay naval base in Cuba.
Terror suspects detained in the US war on terror and held at Guantanamo Bay have been designated "unlawful combatants" without the right to a trial, causing concern among human rights organisations.
Mr Bush had already ordered the military to prepare for trials of suspects who are not United States citizens - and made it clear the death penalty could be applied.
Cases examined
About 680 fighters allied with the former Taleban regime in Afghanistan and members of Osama Bin Laden's al-Qaeda network are being held in Guantanamo Bay.
Last month, trials for terror suspects who are not US citizens moved a step closer when the Pentagon named a chief prosecutor and defence counsel for cases dealt with by military commissions.
The new chief prosecutor, Colonel Fred Borch, said he was looking at more than 10 cases.
Some civil liberties activists fear al-Qaeda and Taleban suspects will not get a fair hearing, and have attacked provisions such as the right to closed hearings when secret evidence is given.
Colonel Will Gunn, the defence counsel, said he would push for trials to be as open as possible, saying the US would be judged on the fairness of the process.
Officials at Guantanamo Bay have reportedly begun planning for an execution chamber, should the death sentence be imposed.
The final decision on whether to carry out executions would rest with President Bush.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/americas/3043332.stm
=====================================
Probability of a fair trial for a political prisoner by a military junta court?
1/1000 against is about right.
