The prosecutors were responding to court papers filed by the defense that requested a broad variety of government documents and access to captured Al Qaeda and Taliban prisoners.
The judge was responding to the prosecution's refusal to allow Mr. Moussaoui to have access to captured Qaeda terrorists who might be able to provide testimony useful to his defense.
Administration officials say they are worried that if Mr. Moussaoui is allowed to interview Mr. bin al-Shibh, it will open the door for other terrorist suspects to demand access to captured Qaeda members, undermining those prosecutions as well.
The issue of defense access to captured Qaeda leaders has threatened to derail the civilian trial of Mr. Moussaoui and throw the case into a military tribunal, where he would probably have fewer procedural rights.
The Justice Department renewed its warning that the case against Zacarias Moussaoui might have to be dismissed if the trial judge continued to insist that Mr. Moussaoui have access to captured terrorists of Al Qaeda for questioning.
His trial has been delayed indefinitely as an appeals court weighs whether Mr. Moussaoui should be allowed to have access to captured Qaeda witnesses who might help prove his innocence.
Court-appointed lawyers for Mr. Moussaoui have long cited his constitutional fair-trial rights in suggesting they would demand access to captured terrorist suspects and other witnesses who might be able to support his case.
In its brief to the appeals court, the department cited a 1950 Supreme Court case involving German prisoners held oversees as a central precedent for its argument that Mr. Moussoaui should be denied access to captured Qaeda leaders.
Moussaoui's defense team, which has so far been denied access to captured Al Qaeda members, will certainly seek testimony from al-Shibh, according to Edward B. McMahon, Jr., one of Moussaoui's attorneys.
A30 Panel Ponders 9/11 Suspect A panel of federal appeals judges voiced uncertainty on whether Zacarias Moussaoui could receive a fair trial if the Bush administration continued to deny him access to captured terrorists whose testimony might bolster his defense.
Until the case against John Walker Lindh, the American who fought with the Taliban, was settled by a plea agreement last summer, it was also threatened by the issue of defense access to captured Qaeda leaders.
