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| Version 2 | Version 3 |
|---|---|
| US House passes terror trial bill | US House passes terror trial bill |
| (about 1 hour later) | |
| The US House of Representatives has passed a bill defining the rules for interrogating and trying foreign terrorism suspects. | The US House of Representatives has passed a bill defining the rules for interrogating and trying foreign terrorism suspects. |
| The bill, backed by President George W Bush, would allow military tribunals to try the several hundred suspects held at Guantanamo Bay in Cuba. | The bill, backed by President George W Bush, would allow military tribunals to try the several hundred suspects held at Guantanamo Bay in Cuba. |
| Supporters say the bill gives America the tools it needs to bring terror suspects to justice. | Supporters say the bill gives America the tools it needs to bring terror suspects to justice. |
| Critics say it curbs the rights usually granted in civil and military courts. | Critics say it curbs the rights usually granted in civil and military courts. |
| The legislation is a response to a Supreme Court ruling in June that the original military tribunals set up by the Bush administration to prosecute detainees were in violation of American and international law. | The legislation is a response to a Supreme Court ruling in June that the original military tribunals set up by the Bush administration to prosecute detainees were in violation of American and international law. |
| Senate vote | |
| The new measures provide defendants with more legal rights than they had under the old system, but it eliminates their right to challenge their detention and treatment in federal court. | The new measures provide defendants with more legal rights than they had under the old system, but it eliminates their right to challenge their detention and treatment in federal court. |
| The bill forbids treatment of detainees that would constitute war crimes - such as torture, rape and biological experiments - but gives the president the authority to decide which other techniques interrogators can use. | |
| The Senate is expected to vote on a near-identical bill on Thursday, which if also passed, would give President Bush and Republicans a substantial victory before mid-term elections in November. | The Senate is expected to vote on a near-identical bill on Thursday, which if also passed, would give President Bush and Republicans a substantial victory before mid-term elections in November. |
| If the Senate bill is passed, military tribunals could resume under the new guidelines in early 2007. | |
| There is the possibility however, that if this new legislation is passed, it could also be challenged in the Supreme Court. |