Why was it that when I wrote to the Foreign Secretary David Miliband about the fate of the remaining British residents in Guantanamo Bay, did I receive a reply from the Counter Terrorism Department?

These detainees have not been charged or tried for any offence, so why should our own Government adopt the view that they are terrorists, or at best terror suspects, just because America says so?

The reply I received was just as disappointing.

It said the US government is not inclined to release British resident Binyam Mohammed al Habashi, who is reportedly going insane, because of "significant security concerns" although no details were given.

At least the British Government is still actively engaged in negotiations for his release which is more than can be said of Shaker Aamer, another British resident, for whom negotiations have been discontinued due to the same security concerns.

As for Bournemouth resident Ahmed Belbacha, who was cleared for release by the US authorities and is at serious risk of torture if he is returned to Algeria, no mention was made of him. If it had not been for his imprisonment by the US in 2002, he would have been able to return back to Britain to appear before a tribunal hearing and defend his asylum appeal.

It seems the British Government is once again dragging its feet about securing their release just as in the case of British residents who recently returned to Britain, amongst whom was Omar Deghayes. We must demand their immediate release and call for an end to their continued sacrifice to Bush's fabricated and bogus "war on terror".

As for America's "significant security concerns", I have very real ones too - for the remaining detainees imprisoned in Guantanamo Bay, nearly 300 in all, whose lives are put in jeopardy and destroyed with every day that passes.

  • John Catt, Shepherds Croft, Brighton