Italy's EU presidency was urged to ensure that the...

Italy's EU presidency was urged to ensure that the rights of terrorist suspects facing secret US military tribunals in Guantanamo Bay were respected. The demand followed news that two European detainees at Camp Delta in Cuba - both British citizens - would be among the first to face a military tribunal. The plight of Moazzam Begg, 35, from Birmingham, and Londoner Feroz Abassi, 23, raised concerns about other EU citizens being held on the island. Among the 600-plus detainees at the camp, at least 13 were from the Union. The two Britons had reportedly been given a choice: plead guilty and accept a 20-year prison sentence - or be executed if found guilty. Graham Watson, Liberal group leader in the European Parliament, said he was "deeply concerned" about the prisoners' dilemma and would raise the matter with António Vitorino, the justice and home affairs commissioner. Watson was the author of reports on the anti-terrorist legislation drawn up by the EU in the wake of the 11 September 2001 terror attacks. He told European Voice: "The military tribunals established by the US do not fulfil the standards guaranteed by the European Convention on Human Rights and I am particularly concerned that such tribunals will be held in secret and the detainees could be condemned to death."