WASHINGTON: Britain has decided to treat Al Qaeda and Taliban fighters captured by its forces in Afghanistan as prisoners of war and turn them over to the interim Afghan government, revealing differences between Britain and the US over how to deal with the captives under international law.

By planning to surrender captives to Afghan instead of US authorities, the British government signalled lingering reservations about the Bush administration’s approach. It put the US at odds with its closest ally in the war on terrorism and could complicate efforts by US authorities to interrogate and prosecute Al Qaeda or Taliban fighters captured by the British.

The British decision left the administration further isolated in its policy to classify the detainees as “unlawful combatants” rather than as prisoners of war under the Geneva Convention. Under the policy, the administration has placed hundreds of prisoners in indefinite detention without charge and is preparing to prosecute some before special military tribunals. The policy has drawn sharp objections from human rights groups and some foreign governments.

“The British make the point that they’ll be holding their prisoners only temporarily,” said Michael Noone, an international law professor at Catholic University. “That makes a lot of sense and will create a problem for the United States in justifying its interpretation of the Geneva Convention.” The British decision was prompted by the arrival in Afghanistan this month of 1,700 British troops to assist US forces in the hunt for Taliban and Al Qaeda fighters. The British have yet to capture any enemy fighters.

“As a matter of policy it’s been decided that every detainee we take will be treated as a prisoner of war under the Geneva Convention,” a British official told reporters on Monday at Bagram air base. “We believe our interpretation is correct, and I’m sure the Americans believe theirs is correct.”

The British position does include some leeway for exceptions, particularly if Al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden or one of his top lieutenants falls into British hands, British officials said, although what would happen in such cases was unclear. —Dawn/LAT-WP News Service (c) The Washington Post.