BAGHDAD, June 22: The United States plans to turn over legal, but not physical, custody of Saddam Hussein and some other prisoners to the interim Iraqi government soon after it takes over on June 30, a senior official said on Tuesday.

He said Saddam Hussein and others would eventually face trial as war criminals before a special tribunal set up last year. "We understand the importance of transferring the high-value detainees to the Iraqi interim government upon their request, which we anticipate will be received shortly after July 1," the official in Iraq's US-led administration said.

"Because the Iraqi interim government is not currently in a position to safeguard these detainees, at least in large numbers, our current plan calls for the transfer of legal responsibility over a certain number of high-profile detainees...while physical custody will remain with the multinational force in Iraq," he told reporters.

The official confirmed that Saddam Hussein would be among the first group to be legally handed over to the interim government after the US-led occupation formally ends on June 30. It had not been decided how many others would be transferred in the same way.

The official said the former Iraqi president and other detainees handed over legally to the new government would then become "subject to Iraqi due process, including the right to speedy trial, the right to counsel and the right to have judicially issued arrest warrants in place to authorize continued detention".

The US military holds fewer than 50 prisoners of war, including Saddam, with several thousand detainees held in connection with guerrilla attacks or on suspicion they could pose a threat to the country's security. -Reuters