Kingdom Frees 18 Former Gitmo Detainees
Samir Al-Saadi, Arab NewsJEDDAH, 27 December 2006 — The Interior Ministry announced yesterday that 18 former Guantanamo detainees that returned from the US prison camp in Cuba earlier this year have been released from custody. The announcement comes a week after 11 other former detainees were released.
Twenty-eight of these former prisoners of the so-called US “War on Terror†are Saudi nationals while one is a Saudi-born resident whose parents also live in the Kingdom.
The Interior Ministry said that the 11 men released last week had completed prison sentences for various charges related to their detention in Guantanamo, while the charges against the 18 released yesterday were dismissed. To date, 51 Saudis have been released from Guantanamo while 74 still remain at the prison.
The Interior Ministry said in a statement that the cooperation of the freed Saudis is vital to ensure the return of the other men still languishing in Guantanamo.
Arab News carries this report on the release of Saudis, returned from Guantanamo this past spring and summer, back into the general population. It notes that they will continue to be watched and that their behavior will be used by the US in determining the release status of others still in the US detention facility.
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December:28:2006 - 15:55
Is there any information on what the men did to be imprisoned in the first place?
December:29:2006 - 10:57
Unfortunately, no. For the most part, these Saudis were captured in Afghanistan or Pakistan; they were in the wrong place at the wrong time, but just what they were doing at those times and places isn’t at all clear.
December:31:2006 - 05:13
[...] In other news, Dotsson posted about the recent countdown for Saddam Hussein’s death sentence. Suprisingly, the countdown seems to be already over; this is all while the US “frees 18 ex-Guantanamo detainees,” according to the article posted by Crossroads Arabia. [...]
January:03:2007 - 16:13
John,
An interesting perspective on Gauntanamo can be gathered by reviewing Anarcho Akbar’s article entitled, International Day to Shut Down Guantánamo.
January:03:2007 - 16:51
Thanks for the link. I’ve got some problems with the attitude of that article, but I’m certainly not a cheerleader for what’s happened at Guantanamo.
January:03:2007 - 22:06
Sure, its understandable… I mean the site is not named Anarcho Akbar for nothin.
January:04:2007 - 13:23
Yes, that was a clue…