The United States is holding several teenage boys, between the ages of 13 and 15, at Guantanamo Bay Naval Base. One is a Canadian citizen.

Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff General Richard Myers defended the imprisonment of several boys between the ages of 13 and 15 during a recent Pentagon press conference. The boys are being held in connection with the US military's invasion of Afganistan and the ongoing "War on Terror."

When pressed on the issue General Myers said, "They may be juveniles - but they're not on a Little League team anywhere."

"They're on a major league team, and it's a terrorist team. Some have killed. Some have stated they're going to kill again."

Their detainment drew harsh criticism from Amnesty International and the United Nations.

"That the US sees nothing wrong with holding children at Guantanamo and interrogating them is a shocking indicator of how cavalier the Bush administration has become about respecting human rights," Amnesty International spokesman Alistair Hodgett told the Associated Press.

UN special representative for the rights of children in war, Olara Otunnu, said that if they were found to have been fighting as child soldiers, they should be demobilised, reintegrated and rehabilitated.

"Whatever the circumstances, children should be reunited with their families," he said.

"We do not sentence children to jail. We do not punish them. We give them healing and get them rehabilitated."

Canadian media reported that one of the boys is a Canadian citizen, suspected in a grenade attack in Afghanistan which killed one US soldier.

General Richard Myers said the boys were being held "for a very good reason - for our safety".