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The U.S. military task force responsible for Omar Khadr's detention issued a statement Wednesday contradicting Mr. Khadr's defense lawyers, who stated the day previous that the imprisoned Canadian is too ill to attend his court hearing.

On Tuesday, Lieutenant-Commander Bill Kuebler, Mr. Khadr's U.S. military defense lawyer, told reporters that he'd asked for a one-day delay in Mr. Khadr's hearing (the court date was initially set for Wednesday, then moved to Thursday) in large part because Mr. Khadr told his lawyers he was suffering from dizziness.

However on Thursday the Joint Task Force responsible for running the Guantanamo Bay prison camps issued a statement saying a physician went to check on Mr. Khadr.

"Khadr stated he had no complaints," the statement said. "The physician conducted an examination and found the detainee to be in good health with no complaints or problems."

Talking to reporters on Wednesday, Lt.-Cmdr. Kuebler said the defense also asked for a delay because of issues concerning access to two classified documents. However he indicated that Mr. Khadr's medical condition was the main reason for the request.

With the exception of the newly-arraigned alleged September 11th co-conspirators, Mr. Khadr is the only charged detainee in Guantanamo Bay who has not boycotted his trial.

Asked whether Mr. Khadr wants to go to court this week, Lt.-Cmdr. joked: "I don't know that I want to come to court this week. What he wants is to come home to Canada.

When a reporter asked directly if Mr. Khadr was considering a boycott, Lt.-Cmdr. Kuebler replied: "Omar has not done that; I would not encourage him to do that. I'm certain that there's pressure to do those types of things but thus far he certainly hasn't responded in any way that's consistent with that.

"I don't think that would be the right answer for him, but obviously those temptations — well not temptations — those pressures are there. But again I don't think that's going to be an issue this week, or any week for that matter."

Lt.-Cmdr. Kuebler said Mr. Khadr believes his dizziness is a result of the shrapnel injuries he sustained to both his eyes during the 2002 Afghan firefight in which he was captured at the age of 15.

Mr. Khadr is accused of murdering a U.S. soldier during that firefight; he also faces several other charges. If convicted, he could spend the rest of his life in prison.

Observers will get a better grasp on Mr. Khadr's physical and emotional condition when (or if) he appears in court on Thursday. While Lt.-Cmdr. Kuebler often asserts that Mr. Khadr remains hopeful, he indicted on Wednesday that Mr. Khadr's outlook is not overly optimistic.

"It's tough for him to believe anything good is going to happen," Lt.-Cmdr. Kuebler said.