WASHINGTON, July 8 (UPI) -- In response to a U.S. Supreme Court ruling, the Pentagon has announced all 595 terror suspects held at Cuba's Guantanamo Bay prison will get speedy hearings.
The hearings will determine if each of the men meets the definition of "enemy combatant," which would justify their detention. The Supreme Court last week ruled the U.S. government was jailing terrorism suspects without due process.
The administration has used the enemy combatant designation to argue the detainees do not warrant some protections afforded by the Geneva Conventions, the Washington Post said Thursday.
Wednesday's decision says by July 17, every detainee will be notified that his status as an enemy combatant will be reviewed in the new hearings and has a right to a hearing in federal court.
Each one will receive the help of a non-lawyer military officer acting as a "personal representative," who will assist him in preparing for the combatant status hearing. Detainees will be offered interpreters, and will be allowed to testify, present evidence, call witnesses "if readily available" and question witnesses.
