Originally published by the Voice of America (www.voanews.com).
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February 23, 2009

Freed Guantanamo Detainee is Back in Britain
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http://enews.voanews.com/t?ctl=22785F0:A6F02AD83191E1609C3772A73092B2503CF5CDEF8FC051DA&
 
Binyam Mohamed is the first Guantanamo detainee to be released since
President Obama took office in January 
Former British resident Binyam Mohamed, center wearing white cap is
accompanied by officials at Northolt military base in west London,
Monday 23 Feb. 2009Former British resident Binyam Mohamed has been
released from the U.S. prison at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, after seven years
of detention -- the first release since U.S. President Barack Obama took
office a month ago. British and U.S. officials said the 30-year-old
Mohamed arrived in Britain Monday. The British government had lobbied
for the release of Ethiopian-born Mohamed, who was arrested in Pakistan
in 2002 and had been held at Guantanamo since 2004. He was accused of
attending al-Qaida training camps in Afghanistan and plotting to set off
a radioactive bomb. Mohamed alleges he was tortured by Pakistani agents
in the presence of a British agent in Pakistan and tortured by U.S.
interrogators in Morocco and Afghanistan before being sent to
Guantanamo. In a statement, the U.S. Justice Department said an
interagency panel determined that the transfer is consistent with the
national security and foreign policy interests of the U.S. and the
interests of justice. Mr. Obama has ordered the controversial Guantanamo
prison to be closed within a year. U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder is
visiting the facility Monday as part of the review. Rights groups and
foreign governments have condemned the Guantanamo detention center,
where many detainees have been imprisoned for years without trial. Some
250 prisoners are currently being held at the facility.


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