The process carries no force of law and can be revoked at any time, but would permit a detainee to go before review board composed of three military officers once a year to explain why he is no longer a threat to the United States and its allies.

The board would recommend to a civilian political appointee whether to continue detaining or to release the prisoner after considering information provided by the military, the detainee, his government and his family.

A draft memorandum outlining the plan said the process was "established solely as a matter of discretion and does not confer any right or obligation enforceable by law."

The US defense secretary can suspend the procedures set forth at any time, according to the memorandum.

The Pentagon posted the memorandum on its www.defenselink.mil website and invited the public to fax comments to the Defense Department's Office of General Counsel at (703) 614-6745.

Human rights group lost no time in criticizing it.

"As described, the review board may be suitable for adjudicating a contested parking ticket, but it is not an acceptable process for deciding the fate of men being held for years without charge or trial," Amnesty International said in a statement.

"What happened to the presumption of innocence, judicial independence and the right of appeal?" it said.

Some 660 prisoners suspected of being Taliban or al-Qaeda are being held without charges indefinitely as "enemy combatants" at the US Navy base in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.

"The idea here is to provide more transparency into the review process," said a defense official.

Under the process set forth in the memorandum, a civilian political appointee would designated to oversee the process and to decide the fate of the prisoners.

He also will select a military officer to gather "all reasonably available threat information about the enemy combatant and any other information indicating whether it would be in the interest of the United States and allies to release the enemy combatant," according to the memorandum

The detainee would be permitted to see the information against him "to the extent it is both necessary to his presentation of the information to his review board and consistent with national security."

Summaries of information will be provided to detainees in cases where national security is an issue, unless the summaries themselves also are considered inconsistent with national security.

A military officer will be assigned by the board to help a detainee present his case at a hearing before the review board.

The government of the detainees' home nation will be informed of the review and asked to notify the detainee's next of kin who can provide information to the board in writing.

In the event, a board cannot reach a unanimous agreement on a recommenation, the process allows for a written dissent to a recommendation by a majority of the board.

WAR.WIRE