U.N. experts said Friday that suspected terrorists held for three years by the United States at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, may be subject to "inhuman and degrading treatment." "Many of the inmates are completing their third year of virtually incommunicado detention, without legal assistance or information as to the expected duration of their detention," The Associated Press quoted a joint statement as saying. The experts on arbitrary detention noted that there were some positive developments at Guantanamo in 2004, including the release of a number of inmates. "These developments are, however, insufficient to dispel the serious concerns," the experts said. U.S. authorities said they were treating the Guantanamo prisoners consistent with the Geneva Conventions, though they say the accords do not apply to the detainees, claiming they are "enemy combatants" as opposed to prisoners of war.
