The Government has been accused of breaking the law by remaining silent over Guantanamo detainee Omar Deghayes.

Asim Qureshi, a specialist in international law who advised human rights organisation Cage Prisoners, has produced a report detailing the legal obligations he says the UK has towards Mr Deghayes and is failing to uphold.

Ministers say they are unable to help Mr Deghayes and the other UK detainees because they were refugees rather than citizens before their capture.

Britain granted Mr Deghayes asylum from Libya, the country of his birth, after accepting he may be in danger following the assasination of his father, a political dissident.

But the Home Office says it is now up to Libya to help him. Mr Qureshi's report points out that although Mr Deghayes does not have a British passport, which would entitle him to UK consular help, he was travelling under British identity documents when he was taken to Guantanamo.

Because the UK is signed up to the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, it is obliged to make sure any person under its sovereignty has their human rights protected.

The lawyer also claims that by failing to make representations on Mr Deghayes' behalf, the Government has destined him to be sent back to Libya - a scenario which the US has put forward.

This would break an international legal treaty, the Convention Against Torture and other Cruel, Unusual or Degrading Treatment or Punishment, which forbids states from sending people back to countries where they will probably be tortured.

Mr Qureshi said: "International conventions go a very long way in establishing strong norms of international law binding states to act in the best interests of refugees.

"The Government has so far failed to uphold the international rule of law in protesting against the conditions in which these men are being held.

"They are not merely foreigners to whom the Government holds no responsibility.

"They are individuals who, having faced oppression and injustice, fled to the UK in order to gain safety, and have indeed been granted it.

"The actions of the Government are based solely on political considerations to simply ignore those people."

Mr Qureshi's report will be presented at an international human rights conference at the European Parliament next week.

Jackie Chase, who is campaigning for justice for Mr Deghayes, is speaking at the conference and it is hoped three others will accompany her to speak to MEPs, although the group is short of funds.

She said: "This is a unique opportunity to speak to some of the best brains in human rights about the case and in particular, get the European Parliament to intervene.

She asked anyone who can donate to the campaign to call 01273 735046.