WASHINGTON – The Supreme Court prolonged the legal limbo of hundreds of terror suspects in an American military prison in Cuba, refusing yesterday to consider whether the government’s plan for military trials unfairly denies them basic legal rights.

So far only a handful of the 550 detainees from about 40 countries have been charged with war crimes. More are expected once courts sort out how they may be tried.

The legal uncertainty surrounding the men, many of whom were captured during the U.S.-led war in Afghanistan in 2001, has prompted international criticism and spawned multiple court fights.

The Supreme Court had been asked to use an appeal by Osama bin Laden’s former driver to decide whether the Bush administration is trying to shortcut defendants’ rights by holding a type of military trial last used during World War II.

A federal judge ruled last fall that Salim Ahmed Hamdan and others put on trial at the Guantanamo Bay Naval Base should be allowed to confront witnesses and see evidence against them, which are standard under military justice rules but are not guaranteed to detainees.

The Supreme Court rejected the case yesterday, which was not surprising because an appeals court also is considering the issue and has scheduled arguments March 8.

In addition, the court heard three significant terrorism cases last year and was not expected to take on another big one so soon.

It was a minor victory for the government, which was ordered by the Supreme Court last year to give detainees in America and Cuba more legal rights.

Since those landmark decisions, lawsuits have been filed in Washington on behalf of dozens of detainees claiming they are being wrongly held. Some of those cases eventually will make it to the Supreme Court. The government has also been sued for millions of dollars in damages by inmates claiming mistreatment.

Jose Padilla, a U.S. citizen suspected of terrorism, who is being held without charge in Charleston, S.C., is trying to win his freedom in court.

Separately, a Supreme Court appeal was filed this month on behalf of Zacarias Moussaoui, the only defendant charged in U.S. courts in an alleged Al Qaeda conspiracy that included the September 11, 2001, attacks. Mr. Moussaoui, a French citizen, wants access to Al Qaeda witnesses during his trial.

Carl Tobias, a law professor at the University of Richmond, said international leaders have been watching the Hamdan case closely and are eager for a speedy resolution.

Hamdan, a Yemeni, is charged with conspiracy to commit war crimes, murder, and terrorism. He contends he is innocent.