US fast-tracks 'dirty bomb' case

Jose Padilla is considered a threat to US national security

The US Supreme Court has promised a prompt hearing for the government's appeal against the release of "dirty bomb" suspect Jose Padilla.

The court said it would grant the Bush administration's request to speed up its handling of Mr Padilla's case.

Mr Padilla was arrested at Chicago airport and accused of involvement in a plot to set off a radiological weapon.

Last month, an appeal court ruled that as a US citizen seized on US soil, he could not be held indefinitely.

But on Thursday, the same court agreed to delay Mr Padilla's release until the Supreme Court could rule on the matter.

The Supreme Court could now hear the case as early as next month, with a ruling due by the end of June.

Mr Padilla was arrested in 2002 and is being held as an enemy combatant in a military jail.

The administration says Mr Padilla's detention is necessary for US security.

Presidential order

Mr Padilla has been held in a naval facility in Charleston, South Carolina, since June 2002, a month after his arrest.

He has been unable to meet defence lawyers or challenge his detention because he is regarded as a threat to national security.

He is thought to be the only US citizen since World War II to be detained on a presidential order.

The appeal court in New York says President George W Bush does not have the authority to hold him in military custody indefinitely.

Last month, the judges said Mr Padilla should be released from military custody within 30 days, but added that the US Government was free to transfer him to civilian jurisdiction.