[JURIST] DC District Judge John Bates Thursday ruled [PDF] that a US citizen detained in Saudi Arabia at the apparent request of the US government may have the right to challenge his detention in American courts, rejecting the government's argument that the challenge should be dismissed for lack of jurisdiction. Lawyers for Virginia native Ahmed Abu Ali, a 23-year-old student held without charge in a Saudi prison since June 2003, contend that the US ordered Saudi Arabia to arrest and hold him so he could be interrogated under torture without recourse in US courts. The US denies the allegations. Bates has ordered federal lawyers to produce documents that will show whether US officials played a role in Abu Ali's arrest. AP has more.