WASHINGTON (AFP) – The US Supreme Court on Monday extended the deadline for the government to appeal a lower court ruling ordering it to make public dozens of photos allegedly showing US soldiers abusing detainees in Iraq and Afghanistan.
Monday's order by Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg pushed back a deadline for the Obama administration to file a petition with the Supreme Court by 30 days, from June 9 to July 9.
In April, the Obama administration announced it had agreed to release hundreds of photos from US-run prisons in Iraq and elsewhere in response to a long-running lawsuit filed by the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU).
But President Barack Obama last month reversed that decision, arguing that publishing the photos would cause a backlash against US troops in Iraq and Afghanistan.
The photos are part of a wider debate about interrogation tactics against terror suspects employed by the previous administration of George W. Bush, with rights groups and Democratic lawmakers charging Bush-era figures approved torture.
more
Printer-friendly format
Email this thread to a friend
Bookmark this thread
(1000+ posts)
Send PM |
Profile |
Ignore