Mujahideen fought for the Bosnian Government during the war

The group's lawyer, Fahrija Karkin, said that the six might be transferred to the US base at Guantanamo, Cuba, where the Americans are holding al-Qaeda prisoners captured in Afghanistan.

One of the six, Bensayah Belkacem, was accused of having at least one telephone conversation with a senior aide to Osama Bin Laden about getting hold of foreign passports.

The others - believed to be Algerian and named as Mustafa Adir, Sabir Lamar, Muhamed Nehle, Lakdar Bumedien and Budelah Hadz - were arrested after a tip-off led to the closure of the US and British embassies in Sarajevo for several days in October.

Human rights appeal

Reuters news agency quoted a US defence official as saying that the six could be taken into custody as early as Friday by peacekeepers from the Nato-led stabilisation force S-For.

An S-For spokesman refused to comment, citing operational security concerns.

Mr Karkin said he would appeal to the Bosnian Human Rights Chamber, a national institution set up under Bosnia's peace agreement, to prevent their deportation.

A lower court has already banned the men's extradition.

The influx of Mujahideen fighters - some reportedly sponsored by Bin Laden - to support the Muslim campaign during the Bosnian war has raised concern that Bosnia may have become a centre for extremist plots, a charge denied by the Bosnian leadership.

A number of people have already been deported from Bosnia on suspicion of terrorist links.