Question no 9 by Johan Van Hecke (H-0612/06)

Subject: Closure of the Guantánamo Bay prison camp

At the annual summit of European and American leaders in Vienna, President Bush said that he wished to close the controversial prison camp at Guantánamo Bay but that he was awaiting a ruling by the US Supreme Court as to where the prisoners could be tried. In addition, it is necessary to ascertain how countries can take prisoners back. Some will have to be tried in the USA if there are no guarantees of due process in their own country. According to Bush, some 400 prisoners currently remain in the camp.

Does the Council know how many Europeans are being held at Guantánamo Bay? Could they not be returned with a minimum of delay and tried in Europe, where the most guarantees of correct treatment exist and as President Bush himself has suggested?