While Condoleezza Rice travels around saying, "We do not torture" -- proof positive that the Republicans have learned nothing from Richard "I am not a crook" Nixon -- the US government has admitted that it has kept the Red Cross from seeing all prisoners-- er, detainees in US custody.

The state department's top legal adviser, John Bellinger, made the admission but gave no details about where such prisoners were held.

Correspondents say the revelation is likely to increase suspicion that the CIA has been operating secret prisons outside international oversight.

File that under the Department of Duh!

For an Administration that, in justifying the Patriot Act's invasions of the privacy of American citizens, says, in effect, "If you have nothing to hide, you have nothing to worry about," their hiding of prisoners from all international contact smacks of great hypocrisy -- which probably tells them that they're on the right track.

Mr Bellinger said some of the allegations of secret prisons were "so overblown as to be ludicrous".

The ICRC wants access to all foreign terror suspects held by the US "in undisclosed locations".

"The dialogue continues on the question. We would like to obtain information and access to them," ICRC spokesman Florian Westphal said on Thursday.

Human rights groups say there is no way of knowing whether detainees being held in secret are being tortured.

On her visit to Europe, Condoleezza Rice has repeatedly denied that the US tortures prisoners.

Then why refuse the Red Cross access? What does the Bush Administration have to hide?

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