Judge rules Afghan prisoners can sue in U.S. court

By James Vicini

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A federal judge ruled on Thursday that some prisoners at a U.S. military base in Afghanistan can sue for their release in civilian courts, dealing a blow to the U.S. government's position on the issue.

The Obama administration, following in the footsteps of the previous Bush administration, has argued that the detainees at the Bagram base have no right to have their lawsuit heard in federal court in Washington.

But U.S. District Judge John Bates rejected that argument and said three of four detainees who sued the U.S. government can proceed with their bid to win their freedom.

"Bagram detainees who are not Afghan citizens, who were not captured in Afghanistan and who have been held for an unreasonable amount of time -- here over six years -- without adequate process" have the legal right to sue in U.S. court, the judge ruled in a 53-page opinion.

The U.S. Supreme Court ruled last year that prisoners at the U.S. military base at Guantanamo Bay, which is leased from Cuba, have the right to sue in the American judicial system to seek their release.

It has been unclear whether that ruling would also apply to prisoners held in Afghanistan. There are some 600 detainees in U.S. custody at Bagram and the military is planning to build a $60 million (41 million pound) prison complex.

President Barack Obama in January ordered the Guantanamo prison closed within one year. The facility has been widely criticized by rights groups and foreign governments. About 240 prisoners are held there.

U.S. officials have ruled out transferring any Guantanamo prisoners to Bagram.