US president George W. Bush Wednesday has acknowledged the existence of previously secret CIA prisons around the world, and said 14 high-value terrorist suspects have been transferred from the system to Guantanamo Bay for trials. Defending the CIA proram, Bush says it has helped gather important intelligence information.
CRI Washington correspondent Liu Wei reports.
 Reporter:
This is the first time the Bush administration has acknowledged the existence of secret CIA secret.
The US president said the detainees include people responsible for the bombing of the US ship Cole in 2000 in Yemen and the 1998 attacks on US embassies in Kenya and Tanzania, in addition to the 9/11 attacks in 2001.
Of the these, the most notorious are Khalid Sheik Mohammed, believed to be the No. 3 al-Qaida leader before he was captured in Pakistan in 2003, and Ramzi Binalshibh, an alleged would-be 9/11 hijacker.
The US administration has come under criticism for its treatment of terrorism detainees. The European Union lawmakers claimed the CIA was conducting clandestine flights in Europe to take terror suspects to countries where they could face torture.
The Democrats have accused the Bush administration of violating both US and international laws by keeping these detainees in secret prisons.
Defending the prison program, Bush said the questioning of the detainees has provided critical intelligence information about terrorist activities. He did not give details about interrogation techniques used saying only that they were tough but did not constitute torture.
A senior administration official said that fewer than 100 people have been detained under the CIA program, rejecting allegations that the number could be in the thousands. With the transfer of the 14 detainees to Guantanamo, the CIA claims it is no longer holding any suspects, but tha official added that the autorities want to the program to continue.
Bush said the 14 key terrorist leaders that have been transferred to Guantanamo Bay would be afforded legal protections consistent with the Geneva Conventions.
Legislation was introduced to the US congress on Bush's behalf on Wednesday. It insists on provisions covering military tribunals that would permit evidence to be withheld from a defendant if necessary to protect classified information.
Liu Wei, CRI News Washington.
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