Ten Saudis return home from Guantanamo Bay prison
Middle East Desk Report

DUBAI—Ten Saudis returned home on Saturday from detention in the U.S. prison camp at Guantanamo Bay where al Qaeda militants are held, the Saudi Interior Ministry said.
Washington has returned dozens of Saudis over the past year in an effort to reduce the numbers detained at the controversial camp ahead of finally closing it but around 13 are still held at the facility. Public anger over the treatment of Saudi detainees in Guantanamo Bay has been high in the kingdom, a close U.S. ally but one which applies Islamic law.
Interior Minister Prince Nayef bin Abdul-Aziz told the official Saudi Press Agency that efforts were underway to bring home the rest, and that U.S. authorities were cooperating. Those repatriated to Saudi Arabia have received financial help from the government to rebuild their lives and many have been allowed to go free. Fahd al-Shamri, a Riyadh-based lawyer representing families of Saudis held at Guantanamo, called for the release of those still held at Guantanamo Bay.
“We hope the next batch will be the last so that we turn this bleak page and bring to an end the suffering of the families of these detainees,” he said in a statement. Washington has designated Guantanamo prisoners, who were mainly seized in Afghanistan after the 2001 U.S. invasion, as “enemy combatants.” They have been denied the prisoner-of-war status that would guarantee them certain rights under international law. Two Saudis were among three prisoners who hanged themselves at the naval base in June. Fifteen of the 19 hijackers who carried out the Sept 11, 2001 attacks on the United States were Saudis and Osama bin Laden himself is Saudi-born. Former Guantanamo Bay inmate David Hicks walked free from an Australian jail after completing a sentence for supporting terrorism Saturday, vowing not to let down those who got him home.
More than six years after he was captured in Afghanistan, the so-called “Aussie Taliban” was escorted from Adelaide’s maximum security Yalata jail past a media throng broadcasting live images of his release. It was the public’s first chance to see the 32-year-old former Muslim convert, who remains the only detainee held at the controversial Guantanamo Bay military base in Cuba to be convicted on terrorism charges. Wearing jeans and a green polo top and appearing chubbier than photos taken before his capture in late 2001, a smiling Hicks met supporters and was immediately driven to an undisclosed location.
Hicks’ lawyer David McLeod read a statement on his behalf which said he was looking forward to “quiet time” with his family and friends. He also asked to be left alone to make a “slow and gentle” transition to freedom. “I will need time to adjust to society and receive medical care for the consequences of five-and-a-half years in Guantanamo Bay,” he said. Hicks thanked his family and friends, the lawyers and human rights groups that waged a lengthy campaign on his behalf, and credited the media with bringing his plight to the public’s attention.
“I would like to acknowledge the huge debt of gratitude that I owe the Australian public for getting me home, I will not forget or let you down,” the statement said. “I had hoped to be able to speak to the media but I am just not strong enough at the moment, it’s as simple as that,” it said.