The new US government disappointed human rights activists when it chose to adhere to the Bush administration's position that detainees imprisoned at the Bagram air base in Afghanistan have no right to challenge their confinement in US courts. Critics have now begun referring to Bagram as "Obama's Guantanamo."

An estimated 650 inmates are being held at the prison north of Kabul, but the public rarely receives any details about how they're being treated, says German Green Party politician and Afghanistan expert, Winfried Nachtwei.

"Up until now, I think it's only fair to describe Bagram as a black hole," he said.