Controversial plans to place alleged al-Qaida terrorists before
American military tribunals at a US naval base in Cuba and on
the Pacific island of Guam are being drawn up in Washington
amid growing fears over the fate of thousands of prisoners in
Afghanistan.
As the Northern Alliance deployed a tank to kill the last of the
400 foreign fighters who staged a revolt in a fortress at
Mazar-i-Sharif, the Pentagon confirmed that it is so concerned
about security that al-Qaida suspects could face trial beyond
the US mainland.
Alarm was increasing yesterday at the prospect of the trials,
which will have the power to impose the death penalty. The
Pentagon is looking at Guam, which was ceded to the US by
Spain in 1898, and the US naval base at Guantanamo Bay in
southern Cuba, as potential venues. Under plans which have yet
to be finalised, the tribunals may be held aboard US ships at
sea.
The plans will prove premature for many prisoners in Afghanistan
who are likely to die before they are passed to the US
authorities.
There is evidence that the Northern Alliance has reneged on its
commitment to detain foreign Taliban fighters in Kunduz. Some
fighters faced summary execution in the northern city when it fell
to the alliance on Monday.
The Red Cross last night expressed its "grave" concern about
the plight of prisoners. A spokeswoman said: "We are
concerned about what has happened in the fortress and reports
of summary executions in Kunduz are a great concern." Hopes
that the UN might be able to assist with the prisoners were
dashed yesterday when a senior spokesman said that it could
not help. Ahmad Fawzi, the UN spokesman at the talks on
Afghanistan in Bonn, insisted responsibility for prisoners was a
matter for the Red Cross.
"We do not have the facilities on the ground," Mr Fawzi said.
The Red Cross is planning a near doubling of its 37 overseas
staff in Afghanistan within the next few days to help monitor the
plight of the prisoners throughout the country. But the
international organisation has been encouraged by the
cooperation it has received from the alliance.
Red Cross workers have so far visited 250 prisoners in
Mazar-i-Sharif who were not in the besieged fortress, and 100
prisoners in Kabul. If the alliance lives up to its commitment,
foreign Taliban who are suspected of having links with al-Qaida
would stand trial. The alliance would like to stage its own trials,
but Washington is keen to lay its hands on al-Qaida suspects.
A spokeswoman for the US Pacific command,
Lieutenant-Colonel Marcella Adams, said that trials are likely to
take place beyond the US mainland because of security fears.
But the proposal to detain prisoners in Guam has surprised
senior figures in Washington and provoked an uproar on the
island. Tom Daschle, the Democratic Senate majority leader,
said: "I think that's an innovative suggestion. I'm not sure
anybody's thought it through enough."
Politicians in Guam have expressed concern that a prisoner of
war camp could further damage its tourist industry, which has
been hard hit since the September 11 attacks.
Ben Pangelinan, a Guam senator, has sent a letter to George
Bush imploring the US president not to imprison or try
suspected terrorists on the island. "Guam's economic lifeblood
is dependent on tourism and its attractiveness as a safe
destination is one of our greatest assets," he said.
