U.S. frees Pakistani detainees after 20 years and no charges

WASHINGTON — U.S. officials returned two Pakistani brothers to their home country on Thursday after holding them for two decades without charges at the Guantanamo Bay military prison.

Abdul and Mohammed Rabbani were the latest detainees to be released as Washington moves toward shutting down the prison. The George W. Bush administration set it up at a U.S. naval base in Cuba for suspected extremists rounded up after the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks on the U.S.

The brothers were originally taken into U.S. custody after Pakistani officials arrested them in their Karachi home in 2002. U.S. officials accused the two of helping Al Qaeda members with lower-level logistical support including housing.

The brothers said they were tortured while in CIA custody before being sent to Guantanamo.

Records indicate they provided little intelligence of value and recanted statements made during interrogations on the grounds that they were obtained by physical abuse.

The pair’s repatriation was announced in a Pentagon statement. It was not clear whether Pakistan set conditions for their return.

“The United States appreciates the willingness of the Government of Pakistan and other partners to support ongoing U.S. efforts focused on responsibly reducing the detainee population and ultimately closing the Guantanamo Bay facility,” the Defense Department said.

At its peak in 2003, Guantanamo held about 600 people whom the U.S. said were terrorists. Supporters of using the detention facility for such figures contend that it prevented attacks. Critics say the military detention and courts subverted human and constitutional rights and undermined U.S. standing abroad.

Thirty-two detainees remain at Guantanamo Bay, including 18 who are eligible for transfer if stable thirdparty countries can be found to take them, the Pentagon said.

Many are from Yemen, which is considered too plagued with war and extremism and too devoid of services for freed Yemeni detainees to be sent there.

Nine of the detainees are defendants in slow-moving military-run tribunals. Two others have been convicted.