Red Cross plans Guantanamo visit

The 14 have been in Guantanamo since Monday

The Red Cross has said it plans to visit a group of high-level terror suspects transferred from secret CIA jails to the US base at Guantanamo Bay.

The group of 14 suspects include alleged mastermind of the 11 September 2001 attacks, Khalid Sheikh Mohammed.

A Red Cross spokeswoman said it had assurances that it could hold the visit under its usual conditions, including private interviews with each detainee.

The visit to the Cuba base is expected to take place sometime next week.

The Red Cross has said it welcomes the decision to transfer the men and moves to put them on trial.

US military prosecutors have said they hope to put 75 key Guantanamo detainees, including the 14, on trial early next year. Some may face the death penalty.

KEY SUSPECTS Khalid Sheikh Mohammed (above left): Alleged mastermind of 9/11; believed to be the Number 3 al-Qaeda leader before he was captured in Pakistan in 2003 Abu Zubaydah: Alleged link between Osama Bin Laden and many al-Qaeda cells before his capture in Pakistan in 2002 Ramzi Binalshibh (above right): One of the alleged masterminds of 9/11 Hambali (Riduan Isamuddin): Alleged senior leader in Jemaah Islamiah (JI); wanted by Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore and the Philippines in connection with blasts Profiles of the 14 suspects Q&A: Bush and CIA jails

The tribunals were stopped in June after the Supreme Court ruled that US President George W Bush did not have the authority to order them but left the way open for the president to seek Congressional approval for their resumption.

The International Committee for the Red Cross (ICRC) has been demanding access to secret detention centres.

On Wednesday Mr Bush admitted the existence of the secret jails but said they were now empty and the remaining 14 inmates - who also include al-Qaeda suspects Ramzi Binalshibh and Abu Zubaydah - transferred to Guantanamo.

He said the CIA treated detainees humanely and did not use torture.

Camp commander Rear Adm Harry Harris said the suspects arrived at Guantanamo on Monday, joining about 450 detainees at the camp.

"As is the case with other detainees, they receive adequate food, shelter and clothing," he said, quoted by AFP news agency.

"They are afforded the opportunity to worship and will have access to the Koran in their native languages and other prayer accessories."

European questions

The ICRC's Antonella Notari welcomed the decision to move the men to Guantanamo, saying: "We have long insisted on the priority for us for people to be held in official places of detention."

The ICRC has been visiting Guantanamo since 2002 and is the only organisation granted full access to prisoners there.

HAVE YOUR SAY The admission made yesterday by Mr Bush should not be a surprise to anyone Dominick, Florida Send us your comments

Meanwhile members of the European Parliament called on European governments to come clean about the CIA jails.

Council of Europe Secretary General Terry Davis said Mr Bush's admission was vindication for the MEPs who had been investigating claims of clandestine CIA activity in Europe.

Until now, the US had admitted to picking up terrorism suspects in Europe, but had not confirmed having any secret prisons, or so-called "black sites".

In a TV address on Wednesday alongside families of victims of the 11 September 2001 attacks, Mr Bush described the prisons as a vital tool in the war on terror, saying that intelligence gathered had saved lives.