Court rejects bid by UK residents in Guantanamo

LONDON, Oct 12 (Reuters) Three top judges today rejected legal efforts by relatives of UK residents held in Guantanamo Bay to make the British government press for their release.

Instead the Appeal Court judges upheld an earlier High Court ruling backing the government's refusal to intervene.

Britain has secured the release of all nine of its citizens held at the prison camp in Cuba but has not pressed the U S to free three other men who merely lived in Britain.

Relatives of the three had challenged the High Court refusal earlier this year with their lawyers arguing that the men were victims of discrimination, breach of their human rights, legal errors and irrationality.

The three are Iraqi Bisher al-Rawi, 37, his Jordanian business partner Jamil el-Banna, a refugee, and Omar Deghayes, a Libyan who was detained in Pakistan.

During the court challenges, the government's refusal to request release of all the men was branded ''legally unsustainable.'' It was claimed that as British residents they had a legitimate expectation that a request to the Americans would be made.

Counsel for the families Rabinder Singh argued that the repeated refusal of the government to act as requested was unlawful.

He accused the government of discrimination, breach of human rights, errors in the decision making process, failure to take into account relevant factors and -- bearing in mind the claims relating to torture of Guantanamo Bay detainees -- irrationality.

REUTERS MQA BS1518