[JURIST] The US DC Circuit Court of Appeals [official website] heard arguments Tuesday in a case brought by Guantanamo Bay [JURIST news archive] detainees challenging their designation as 'enemy combatants.' Last year, Congress passed the Military Commissions Act of 2006 [PDF text], which barred Guantanamo prisoners from challenging their indefinite detention but did allow them to appeal their "enemy combatants" [JURIST news archive] status to the appeals court. Judges Judith Rogers and Douglas Ginsburg doubted from the bench that the administration would produce classified and non-classified information the judges said they needed to review to decide the case, but the Department of the Justice (DOJ) [official website] has promised to disclose the requisite materials.

Last month, the US Supreme Court declined [JURIST report] to hear a lawsuit brought by two Guantanamo Bay detainees challenging the legality of Congress' decision to deny habeas challenges by suspected terrorists under the Military Commissions Act. In early April, the Court declined to hear [JURIST report] another case brought by other Guantanamo detainees on whether those prisoners could challenge their detention in US federal court. AP has more.