The International Committee of the Red Cross has said that it planned to visit the al-Qaeda and Taliban prisoners, which the United States is holding at its military base in Cuba. The first 20 prisoners have arrived at the base in Guantanamo Bay.
The Americans describe the prisoners as detainees and not as prisoners of war. However, the US Defence Department says they are being treated in accordance with the Geneva Convention.
The prisoners will be detained in the US enclave for an indefinite period. They are the first of at least 371 detainees captured in Afghanistan to be sent to the base.
All were shackled and hooded for the 20-hour flight from Afghanistan. An American military spokesman said that the base near Kandahar came under small arms fire after the plane carrying the prisoners took off. It is not clear from where the fire came, but there were no reports of injuries.
