16/03/2004

US frees 26 Guantanamo Bay detainees

Twenty-six Guantanamo Bay detainees from Afghanistan and Pakistan have been released, the US Defense Department has said.

The department said today that it had transferred 23 Afghan and three Pakistani detainees from Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, for release.

The decision to transfer or release a detainee is based on many factors, including whether the detainee is of further intelligence value to the US and whether he is believed to pose a threat to the US, the department said.

A spokesperson said: "We make a determination about the detention and release of a detainee based on the best information and evidence we have at the time. The circumstances in which detainees are apprehended can be ambiguous, and many of them are highly skilled in concealing the truth. The process of evaluation and detention is not free of risk - at least one detainee has gone back to the fight."

Further releases are expected to made in the near future.

Currently, 119 detainees have been released and 12 others have been transferred for continued detention (four to the Saudi Arabian government, one to the Spanish government and seven to the Russian government).

As a result of today’s release, there are approximately 610 detainees held at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.

(gmcg)

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