Legal battle on Guantanamo looms

"The founders of our nation created a constitution dedicated to the protection of liberty, not one that turns a blind eye to indefinite detention without a meaningful opportunity to be heard," one of the lawyers said in a brief on their behalf.

"The MCA's purported repeal of habeas is unconstitutional," he said.

The US constitution states that habeas corpus "shall not be suspended, unless when in cases of rebellion or invasion the public safety may require it".