Canadian troops who capture militants in Afghanistan will now hand the detainees over to American authorities, changing a controversial policy that had left detainees in the hands of Afghan officials.

Foreign Affairs Minister John Baird announced the policy change on Friday, and it effectively ends the practice of transferring suspected Taliban fighters to the local prison system or to Afghanistan's infamous intelligence service.

Human Rights groups and opposition MPs in Canada had long argued that suspected militants were not safe with Afghan officials, and could be subject to torture and abuse.

The announcement on Friday came without any advance notice, surprising many non-Conservative MPs in the House of Commons. Canadian-captured militants will now be sent to the U.S. prison facility in Parwan, which is north of Kabul.

"The U.S. operates this facility with full agreement of the Afghan government and detainees can be prosecuted under Afghan law," he said. "Canadian officials will continue to be present on the ground to monitor all Canadian-transferred detainees until they are sentenced -- or released."

While Canada officially ended its combat mission in Afghanistan in the summer, about 950 Canadian troops are still serving in the country to train local soldiers.

Baird did not explain how Canadian troops would come into contact with combatants if they are only conducting training missions.

"From the onset of our engagement in Afghanistan, we have consistently adapted our detainee transfer process to ensure that we continue to meet our international legal obligations," said Baird said in a separate statement.

"With our combat operations in southern Afghanistan now complete and a new chapter of engagement in Afghanistan beginning, we have determined that this is the best possible way forward for all parties involved."

The U.S. prisoner detention facility opened in 2010 and will eventually be transferred to Afghan control.

In the early stages of the Afghan campaign, Canada transferred its prisoners of war to the U.S. But when torture scandals erupted at U.S. facilities in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, and Abu Ghraib, Iraq, the practice was changed.

By 2006, Canadians were transferring prisoners to local Afghan authorities, which alarmed rights groups and resulted in several legal battles in Canada over the practice.

Those concerns came to the fore in the spring of 2007, when reports surfaced that Afghans were being abused in custody. Those reports prompted the Harper government to re-instate regular inspections by Canadian diplomats at Afghan facilities.

With a report from The Canadian Press



