LONDON/WASHINGTON: American treatment of suspected Al-Qaeda and Taliban prisoners at the US base in Guantanamo, Cuba — including three claiming to be British — and uncertainty about their fate is causing ill-ease and embarrassment through the corridors of power in London.

British government ministers are caught between concern over human rights implications and a desire not to have a public quarrel with the US. London has been left paralysed as officials await a decision by ministers on the approach to take.

A Red Cross delegation was due to hold interviews on Friday with prisoners at the camp. The delegates from the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), in Geneva, arrived on Thursday and were due to tour the camp, made up of 6ft by 8ft cages, where 80 captives are being held.

Last night the British prime minister’s office in Downing Street, London, stressed the importance of “independent corroboration” of US claims that the prisoners are being treated in accordance with the Geneva Convention — the “objective assessment” being made last night by the Red Cross.

But Tony Blair’s spokesman was careful to avoid calling for British suspects to be sent home for trial, as Australia is demanding for its nationals. Insisting there should be no rush to enter a legal minefield he said: “There is no way of knowing they would welcome being brought back,” where charges might be more serious than under US jurisdiction.

As Labour politicians in London confirmed that some ministers are privately encouraging their protest, one senior minister is known to have called the treatment “monstrous”. Mr Blair and a clutch of cabinet colleagues expressed concern more guardedly.

Jack Straw, the UK foreign secretary, stressed the importance of maintaining the moral high ground. “I think it is very important for these people to be held according to the principles of international law,” he said. “Whatever they are alleged to have done, they need to be treated properly. That way one can maintain the moral ascendancy.” Strength of feeling in London government circles over the question was reflected by one senior official who described Washington’s attitude as “not the benchmark of a civilised society”.—Dawn/The Guardian News Service