In 1996, the British government said a three-year inquiry into arms sales to Iraq before the Gulf War had cleared ministers of conspiracy and had revealed no official cover-up.
Alito suggested Hamdan should wait until his trial is over before questioning whether charging him with conspiracy violates the laws of war, as his lawyer contends.
But Eugene Fiddell, a prominent military legal expert, said the conspiracy charge is not a war crime and is outside the jurisdiction of a military commission.