Ginsburg gives U.S. more time on photos

WASHINGTON, June 1 (UPI) -- The U.S. government has 30 more days to file an appeal against an order to release photographs of detainee abuse, a Supreme Court justice ruled Monday.

U.S. Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg granted a government request to extend a deadline for filing an appeal of the lower court order from June 9 to July 9.

The Second U.S. Circuit Court had ruled that the photos, said to depict harsh images of U.S. troops subjecting Iraqi and Afghan prisoners to abuse, must be publicly disclosed under the Freedom of Information Act.

Court watchers said the Ginsburg delay order gives the U.S. Congress more time to act on a measure to block the photos' disclosure by amending the FOIA. The issue was expected to be discussed by both the House of Representatives and the Senate early this month.

U.S. President Barack Obama had initially supported the release of the photos, but the changed his mind after military officials convinced him the images would endanger U.S. forces and cause an anti-American backlash abroad.