Washington:
The United States announced Sunday the transfer of five detainees from Guantanamo Bay to the United Arab Emirates, part of a long-delayed plan to close the controversial military prison.
The move means that 107 detainees remain at Guantanamo Bay, the Pentagon said in a statement, adding that it was "grateful to the government of the United Arab Emirates for its willingness to support ongoing US efforts to close the Guantanamo Bay detention facility."
The five were named as: Ali Ahmad Mohammed al-Razihi, Khalid Abd-al-Jabbar Mohammed Uthman al-Qadasi, Adil Said al-Hajj Ubayd al-Busays, Sulayman Awad Bin Uqayl al-Nahdi and Fahmi Salem Said al-Asani.
The United States opened Guantanamo to hold terror suspects following the September 11, 2001 attacks, and photos of shackled men in orange jumpsuits became a defining image of US foreign policy in the early 2000s.
Inmates were called "enemy combatants" and denied standard US legal rights, meaning many were held for years without charge or trial.
The Guantanamo population has dwindled, and prisoners no longer deemed a risk have either been repatriated or sent to a host country.
The move means that 107 detainees remain at Guantanamo Bay, the Pentagon said in a statement, adding that it was "grateful to the government of the United Arab Emirates for its willingness to support ongoing US efforts to close the Guantanamo Bay detention facility."
The five were named as: Ali Ahmad Mohammed al-Razihi, Khalid Abd-al-Jabbar Mohammed Uthman al-Qadasi, Adil Said al-Hajj Ubayd al-Busays, Sulayman Awad Bin Uqayl al-Nahdi and Fahmi Salem Said al-Asani.
The United States opened Guantanamo to hold terror suspects following the September 11, 2001 attacks, and photos of shackled men in orange jumpsuits became a defining image of US foreign policy in the early 2000s.
Inmates were called "enemy combatants" and denied standard US legal rights, meaning many were held for years without charge or trial.
The Guantanamo population has dwindled, and prisoners no longer deemed a risk have either been repatriated or sent to a host country.
Track Latest News Live on NDTV.com and get news updates from India and around the world
