This letter is from William H. Taft, IV of the State Department to Jakob Kellnberger, President of the International Committee for the Red Cross (ICRC) concerning an Opinion Editorial a member of the ICRC's legal staff wrote for the Financial Times (of London). The Op-Ed was critical of the U.S. policies in prosecuting individuals involved in international terrorism, the U.S. detention of those individuals and the assertion that the detainees have a right to challenge their detention under international law. Mr. Taft states that there is "no such entitlement in the 1949 Geneva Conventions. However, the implication in the article is that the Geneva Conventions do provide such entitlement" and this assertion has the "effect of misleading the public" as to the rights of the detainees. He insists that “There are several other erroneous and inappropriate statements in the article” and that “Your legal staff certainly knows...[that] military courts may exercise jurisdiction over civilians who are unprivileged belligerents or security detainees as well as military personnel; this is consistent with the express terms of both the Third and Fourth Geneva Conventions.” The letter concludes with “we value the serious dialogue we have always had with you and your representatives on the implementation of the Geneva Conventions and the detentions in Guantanamo generally.”