Lord Bracknell
On fire
Excellent. And about time.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/7133760.stm
UK Guantanamo four to be released
Four of the five British residents who are being held at Guantanamo Bay are to be released, the BBC has learned.
The government requested the release of all five men from the US detention camp in August after previously refusing to intervene on behalf of non-UK citizens.
Jamil el-Banna, Omar Deghayes and Abdenour Samuer will come back to the UK, while Shaker Abdur-Raheem Aamer will return to his native Saudi Arabia.
The detainees are not British citizens but lived in the UK before being held.
Intensive negotiations
The fifth man, Ethiopian Binyam Mohammed al Habashi, will remain at Guantanamo.
THE FIVE DETAINEES
Omar Deghayes, Libyan with refugee status
Shaker Abdur-Raheem Aamer, Saudi Arabian granted indefinite leave to remain
Jamil el-Banna, Jordanian with refugee status
Binyam Mohammed al Habashi, Ethiopian asylum seeker
Abdulnour Sameur, Algerian with leave to remain
British and US authorities have been in intensive negotiations about their return over the past few months despite the Pentagon insisting the men are all dangerous.
The US is seeking reassurances that they will not pose any security threat.
The Americans accuse Mr el-Banna of being a prominent al-Qaeda recruiter and financier, Libyan Mr Deghayes of associating with al-Qaeda, and Algerian Mr Sameur of receiving combat training in Afghanistan.
An official announcement on the releases is expected in the next few weeks.
The Conservatives have been asking the government whether they think the three men returning to the UK pose a threat and if so what security precautions will be taken when they return.
The men have all either been granted refugee status, indefinite leave or exceptional leave to remain in the UK.
Camp closure
Foreign Secretary David Miliband formally wrote to his US counterpart Condoleezza Rice with the request for the men's release.
Last year the Court of Appeal upheld the government's decision not to request the return of non-British nationals because the US said it would not negotiate with third countries.
The Foreign Office also said such a move would be counterproductive to its aim of securing the closure of Guantanamo.
The foreign secretary and the home secretary said they requested the release of the men because of steps taken by the US government towards shutting down the detention facility.
The government said all British nationals had been released from Guantanamo by January 2005.
The detention camp at Guantanamo Bay in Cuba was created in early 2002 to hold suspected terrorists captured in Afghanistan.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/7133760.stm
UK Guantanamo four to be released
Four of the five British residents who are being held at Guantanamo Bay are to be released, the BBC has learned.
The government requested the release of all five men from the US detention camp in August after previously refusing to intervene on behalf of non-UK citizens.
Jamil el-Banna, Omar Deghayes and Abdenour Samuer will come back to the UK, while Shaker Abdur-Raheem Aamer will return to his native Saudi Arabia.
The detainees are not British citizens but lived in the UK before being held.
Intensive negotiations
The fifth man, Ethiopian Binyam Mohammed al Habashi, will remain at Guantanamo.
THE FIVE DETAINEES
Omar Deghayes, Libyan with refugee status
Shaker Abdur-Raheem Aamer, Saudi Arabian granted indefinite leave to remain
Jamil el-Banna, Jordanian with refugee status
Binyam Mohammed al Habashi, Ethiopian asylum seeker
Abdulnour Sameur, Algerian with leave to remain
British and US authorities have been in intensive negotiations about their return over the past few months despite the Pentagon insisting the men are all dangerous.
The US is seeking reassurances that they will not pose any security threat.
The Americans accuse Mr el-Banna of being a prominent al-Qaeda recruiter and financier, Libyan Mr Deghayes of associating with al-Qaeda, and Algerian Mr Sameur of receiving combat training in Afghanistan.
An official announcement on the releases is expected in the next few weeks.
The Conservatives have been asking the government whether they think the three men returning to the UK pose a threat and if so what security precautions will be taken when they return.
The men have all either been granted refugee status, indefinite leave or exceptional leave to remain in the UK.
Camp closure
Foreign Secretary David Miliband formally wrote to his US counterpart Condoleezza Rice with the request for the men's release.
Last year the Court of Appeal upheld the government's decision not to request the return of non-British nationals because the US said it would not negotiate with third countries.
The Foreign Office also said such a move would be counterproductive to its aim of securing the closure of Guantanamo.
The foreign secretary and the home secretary said they requested the release of the men because of steps taken by the US government towards shutting down the detention facility.
The government said all British nationals had been released from Guantanamo by January 2005.
The detention camp at Guantanamo Bay in Cuba was created in early 2002 to hold suspected terrorists captured in Afghanistan.
