President George W. Bush on Wednesday issued an executive order that will allow cases against prisoners at Guantanamo Bay to move forward and be considered by military tribunals, the White House said.

The executive order authorizes the establishment of military commissions, fulfilling a technical step required by the Military Commissions Act of 2006, which Bush signed into law last October.

Military prosecutors have filed charges against an Australian, a Yemeni, and a Canadian held at the U.S. detention facility at Guantanamo Bay, where foreign terrorism suspects are being held.

"Now those charges can be reviewed and, as appropriate, trials will be able to proceed before the military commissions established by this executive order," said Gordon Johndroe, a spokesman for the White House National Security Council.