February 8, 2002	Friday	Ziqa’ad 24, 1422

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WASHINGTON, Feb 7: The White House on Thursday declared that the Geneva Convention applies to Taliban forces in the Afghanistan phase of the war on terrorism, but not to Osama bin Laden’s Al Qaeda followers.

“President Bush today has decided that the Geneva Convention will apply to the Taliban detainees but not to the Al Qaeda international terrorists,” Bush spokesman Ari Fleischer told reporters.

The move comes after fevered criticism — including from key US allies — stemming from alleged mistreatment of Taliban and Al Qaeda detainees the United States is holding at “Camp X-Ray” in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.

“It will not change their material life on a day-to-day basis: they will continue to be treated well because that’s what the United States does,” said Fleischer, who noted neither group would be granted prisoner of war status.

And, “Al Qaeda is an international terrorist group and cannot be considered a state party to the Geneva Convention. Its members therefore are not covered,” by the accord, said the spokesman.

DETAINEES ARRIVE IN CUBA: A new group of 28 prisoners captured in Afghanistan arrived by air on Thursday, bringing the total number of detainees to 186.

Six of the detainees were transported on stretchers aboard the C-141 cargo flight that left Kandahar, Afghanistan on Wednesday for the 25-hour flight.

Earlier on Wednesday, the US military resumed controversial flights of heavily guarded Al Qaeda and Taliban captives from Afghanistan to a naval base at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, a senior US official said.

The official, who asked not to be identified, told newsmen that the first flight of captives in more than two weeks had left Afghanistan late on Wednesday and was to arrive at the isolated prison camp late on Thursday. The official did not say how many prisoners were on the flight.

Flights carrying up to 30 of what the Pentagon calls “detainees” were suspended on Jan 23 by defence secretary Donald Rumsfeld pending expansion of outdoor jail facilities at the American base.

A total of 158 captives, whom the Pentagon has refused to classify as prisoners of war, are already being held and interrogated at Guantanamo amid criticism they have not been treated properly under the Geneva Convention.

None has yet been charged with a crime, but Washington has maintained that the prisoners are being treated humanely.

The shackled and blindfolded captives are being flown to Cuba from Kandahar in southern Afghanistan under tight guard and are being housed at the base in 8-by-8-foot cage-like outdoor cells.

The detainees at “Gitmo,” as US soldiers call the base, are of various nationalities. Saudi officials have said that 100 are from the Gulf kingdom and have demanded they be returned to face justice at home.

Bush said last week he was willing to consider Saudi Arabia’s request on a case-by-case basis but U.S. officials doubted it would happen any time soon.—AFP/Reuters