By JERUSALEM POST STAFF
A ban on cruel, inhumane and degrading treatment of foreign terror suspects probably will be included in a defense bill being negotiated in Congress, a crucial Republican lawmaker said Tuesday.
Rep. Duncan Hunter of California, who is leading negotiations to iron out differences between versions passed by the House of Representatives and the Senate, said if changes are made in the bill, they will not water down the detainee provisions drastically.
"Nobody wants to do that," Hunter, the House Armed Services Committee chairman, said in an interview. "I expect a good outcome for all parties."
The White House opposes the provisions and has threatened to veto any bill containing them. But President George W. Bush's national security adviser, Stephen Hadley, has been negotiating with the chief sponsor, Sen. John McCain, to find a compromise that would satisfy objections to the legislation from the Bush administration.