Two American citizens currently in the custody of the military in Iraq called on the U.S. courts to do everything in their power to prevent them from being transferred to Iraqi custody.

The Bush administration responded to the call by arguing that the U.S. courts have no power to intervene because they are in the custody of international forces and not held by the U.S. military.

The court scheduled the hearing of the arguments in the cases of Mohammad Munaf and Shawqi Omar for Tuesday.

Omar, who is also a Jordanian citizen, is charged of collaborating with Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, a militant leader who passed away. Omar allegedly harbored an Iraqi insurgent and four Jordanian fighters and the military also found bomb-making materials at his home in October 2004.

On the other hand, Iraq-native Munaf has been put under arrest in 2005 and accused of planning the kidnapping of three Romanian journalists. Munaf was sentenced to death by an Iraqi court, but the sentence has been thrown out. Nevertheless, the Supreme Court must still settle the legal issue.

According to a U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia panel, Omar has the right to defend himself in an U.S. court because he served in the Minnesota National Guard. Munaf’s appeal was ruled against because of his conviction, members of the panel said.

In another case, Attorney General Michael Mukasey will call on the court to restore the conviction of Ahmed Ressam, a would-be millennium bomber.