Deal may bring home Camp Delta Britons

Fresh hopes of a deal to bring home two British terror suspects held in Guantanamo Bay were raised today as a new round of talks got under way in London.

The discussions were being held at an undisclosed location between Attorney General Lord Goldsmith and the Pentagon's top lawyer, general counsel William Haynes.

Reports in the US suggested that Feroz Abbasi and Moazzam Begg were ready to admit to war crimes in a plea-bargaining deal which could win them a firm release date.

They are among the first inmates of Camp Delta in Cuba being lined up to face controversial US military tribunals - a decision which sparked furious protests in Britain.

Tony Blair is acutely aware of the strength of feeling both inside and outside Parliament and has already raised concerns about the pair with President George Bush.

The president is thought to want to make some concessions to help Mr Blair, his main ally in the war with Iraq, although he has dubbed Begg and Abbasi "bad people".

In all, nine Britons are being held at Guantanamo Bay, all on suspicion of fighting for al Qaeda or the Taliban in Afghanistan.

With only one day scheduled for the latest round of talks, the third session so far between British and US negotiating teams, the Foreign Office said the option of bringing Begg and Abbasi home to face trial had not been ruled out.

Earlier reports had suggested the Government did not want them
return to Britain but senior spokesmen have now denied this.

The Foreign Office said the thrust of today's talks would be to ensure the Britons at the camp were not held indefinitely and that any trial would be fair and held according to internationally recognised standards.

In the US, the Wall Street Journal reported the pair were expected to confess to war crimes, to denounce terrorism and to assist investigators in exchange for a release date.

US officials were said to have voiced the hope that such a deal would show the much criticised tribunal system could be used to win the cooperation of inmates.

However, the Pentagon said that while a plea bargain was "an option" for suspects, it would be impossible to negotiate any deal until formal charges had been drawn up. This is yet to happen. Today's talks are the first to be held in Britain. Lord Goldsmith has visited the US twice, securing the concession that neither Begg nor Abbasi will face the death penalty.

He has also won the right for them to have a British "consultant" on their legal teams and for conversations with their lawyers not to be monitored.

Such deals are not being offered to other nationals held at the camp. However, relatives of the duo have criticised the Government's efforts so far. Last month the mother of 23-year-old Abbasi begged the Government to bring him home for a fair hearing.

Zumrati Juma, a nurse from Croydon said: "It gets harder as time goes on, not easier."

Azmat Begg, from Birmingham, has also spoken of his fears for his 35-year-old son.

The nine Britons are among some 660 suspected al Qaeda and Taliban suspects held at Camp Delta.