An Afghan detainee said Wednesday that he wants to boycott his trial at Guantanamo Bay because the proceedings are unfair and illegal.

Mohammed Jawad, who is accused of throwing a grenade that wounded two U.S. soldiers and an Afghan interpreter, initially refused to attend the pretrial hearing, delaying its start by almost three hours.

When he finally arrived late in the courtroom, the judge, marine Col. Ralph Kohlmann, warned Jawad that if he does not attend future sessions he could still be tried, convicted and sentenced in absentia.

In combative exchanges with the judge, Jawad denounced the tribunal system as unjust. He said he has been mistreated at the U.S. military base in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, where the U.S. military holds about 275 men suspected of links to al-Qaeda and the Taliban, including Canadian Omar Khadr.

"I am innocent, I want justice and fairness," said Jawad, who spoke through a Pashto translator and asked the judge whether journalists could hear his statements.

"Since I was arrested I've been treated unfairly. I have been tortured. I am a human being."

The only specifics he offered were that he's had a bleeding lip for more than a year and that he suffers from constant headaches from the bright lights in his prison cell.

Jawad, who wore the orange uniform reserved for the least compliant detainees, later slammed down his translation headphones and put his head down on the desk. Kohlmann ordered his ankles to remain shackled during the hearing because he was not cooperating fully.

Did not enter plea

Jawad did not enter a plea to charges of attempted murder and intentionally causing serious bodily injury, which could lead to a maximum sentence of life in prison.

Jawad still needs a lawyer, which could further delay his trial. His Pentagon-appointed defence attorney, army Col. James Sawyers, asked to be removed from the case because he is leaving active-duty service. He was excused by the judge.

Jawad said he was 16 when he was arrested, accused of throwing a homemade hand grenade into a jeep carrying two U.S. soldiers and their interpreter in Kabul in December, 2002. The jeep became engulfed in flames, sending shrapnel flying.

One of the U.S. soldiers was left with broken bones in his feet, a punctured ear drum and an eye injury that required about half a dozen surgeries. The other soldier was left with a variety of lower body injuries, while the translator had nerve damage in his leg and still walks with a limp.

The military plans to prosecute about 80 of the roughly 275 prisoners held in Guantanamo, including Khadr. So far, only Khadr and roughly a dozen others have been charged, and none of the cases has gone to trial.

Even if Jawad goes to trial and is found innocent, he could still remain in captivity. The U.S. military retains the right to hold indefinitely those considered to pose a threat to the United States, even if they've been cleared by Guantanamo's "military commissions."