Camp X-ray prisoners win case

THE US Supreme Court ruled yesterday that prisoners seized as potential terrorists and held for more than two years in Cuba may challenge their captivity in American courts, a defeat for President George Bush in one of the first major cases arising from the September 11 attacks.

The 6-to-3 ruling passes no judgment on the guilt or innocence of the approximately 600 foreign-born men, including four Britons, held in the Navy-run prison camp at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.

The justices also did not address the broad issues of human rights and civil liberties surrounding the prisoners’ seizure and detention without trial or guaranteed access to a lawyer.