With the White House's blessing, lawmakers moved on Wednesday to pass
legislation to freeze some Pakistan aid, slap harsh new sanctions on
Iran, and endorse indefinite imprisonment of suspected terrorists.
The Republican-led House of Representatives
was to approve the US$662 billion (S$867 billion) Defense Authorization
bill, which also sets high hurdles for closing the prison at Guantanamo
Bay. The Democratic-held Senate was to quickly follow suit.
US President Barack Obama, who had threatened to veto
earlier versions of the yearly measure, will sign it when it reaches
his desk despite lingering misgivings, spokesman Jay Carney said in a
statement.
'However, if in the process of implementing
this law we determine that it will negatively impact our
counterterrorism professionals and undercut our commitment to the rule
of law, we expect that the authors of these provisions will work quickly
and tirelessly to correct these problems,' said Mr Carney. AFP
