The U.S. Senate approved a defence bill Tuesday that requires the White House to report to Congress every 90 days on the progress in Iraq, but defeated an amendment that would have obliged President George W. Bush's administration to set a timetable for the withdrawal of U.S. forces, reported dpa. The defence policy bill, passed by a 98-0 vote, indicates a greater willingness on the part of U.S. lawmakers to assert themselves in a conflict for which they granted Bush broad authority in 2002. The Senate also voted in favour of an amendment that allows detainees in the war on terrorism at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, to challenge their designation as "enemy combatants" in U.S. federal courts and allow appeals for those convicted in military tribunals and sentenced to 10 more years in prison or death. That amendment was offered by Republican Senator Lindsey Graham and was adopted by a voice vote. Under the amendment sponsored by Republican Senator John Warner, the White House will have to provide Congress with quarterly reports on progress and the strategy in Iraq and the conditions for removing U.S. forces.
