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| Eric Holder hints Yemenis held at Guantánamo may be released | Eric Holder hints Yemenis held at Guantánamo may be released |
| (8 days later) | |
| The US attorney general Eric Holder hinted on Wednesday that the Obama administration may be planning to act on Yemeni prisoners held at Guantánamo Bay. | The US attorney general Eric Holder hinted on Wednesday that the Obama administration may be planning to act on Yemeni prisoners held at Guantánamo Bay. |
| The release of the Yemenis back to their home country would make a big dent in the overall number of Guantánamo detainees. The failure to free Guantánamo prisoners who have been cleared for release is one of the main reasons for the continuing hunger strike. | The release of the Yemenis back to their home country would make a big dent in the overall number of Guantánamo detainees. The failure to free Guantánamo prisoners who have been cleared for release is one of the main reasons for the continuing hunger strike. |
| Holder, asked about Guantánamo at a Capitol Hill hearing on Wednesday, said his preference remained to close the facility but that Congress had blocked that option. He said the Obama administration was looking at sending detainees who have been cleared back to their own countries and declared that the block on Yemenis was under review. | Holder, asked about Guantánamo at a Capitol Hill hearing on Wednesday, said his preference remained to close the facility but that Congress had blocked that option. He said the Obama administration was looking at sending detainees who have been cleared back to their own countries and declared that the block on Yemenis was under review. |
| On Tuesday, Holder said the administration intended to revive a vacant position that oversaw the transition of foreign detainees out of the camp. In January, the State Department reassigned the special envoy, Daniel Fried, who had been in charge of trying to persuade countries to take Guantánamo inmates approved for transfer, and he was not replaced. | On Tuesday, Holder said the administration intended to revive a vacant position that oversaw the transition of foreign detainees out of the camp. In January, the State Department reassigned the special envoy, Daniel Fried, who had been in charge of trying to persuade countries to take Guantánamo inmates approved for transfer, and he was not replaced. |
| "We're in the process of working on that now. We're looking at candidates," Holder told a news conference, reported by Reuters. | "We're in the process of working on that now. We're looking at candidates," Holder told a news conference, reported by Reuters. |
| Delivering a commencement address at the University of California Berkeley school of law at the weekend, Holder criticised members of Congress who "placed unwise and unwarranted restrictions on where certain detainees could be housed, charged and prosecuted". | Delivering a commencement address at the University of California Berkeley school of law at the weekend, Holder criticised members of Congress who "placed unwise and unwarranted restrictions on where certain detainees could be housed, charged and prosecuted". |
| In the speech, reported by he Huffington Post, Holer said: "Let me be clear: those who claim that our federal courts are incapable of handling terrorism cases are not registering a dissenting opinion. They are simply wrong." | In the speech, reported by he Huffington Post, Holer said: "Let me be clear: those who claim that our federal courts are incapable of handling terrorism cases are not registering a dissenting opinion. They are simply wrong." |
| Obama, at a recent press conference, said he had not given up on his 2008 campaign promise to close Guantánamo. Obama, after becoming president in January 2009, promised to close the camps within a year but Congress blocked it, refusing to provide cash for the transfer of prisoners and the refurbishment of an unused prison in Illinois. | Obama, at a recent press conference, said he had not given up on his 2008 campaign promise to close Guantánamo. Obama, after becoming president in January 2009, promised to close the camps within a year but Congress blocked it, refusing to provide cash for the transfer of prisoners and the refurbishment of an unused prison in Illinois. |
| Of the estimated 166 detainees left at Guantánamo, an estimated 91 are Yemenis, and many of these have been cleared for release. Obama put a block on this in January 2011 after the underwear bomb plot that originated in Yemen. | Of the estimated 166 detainees left at Guantánamo, an estimated 91 are Yemenis, and many of these have been cleared for release. Obama put a block on this in January 2011 after the underwear bomb plot that originated in Yemen. |
| The Yemeni government has requested that its citizens be returned to its territory. Holder's comments at the hearing suggest a rethink of this block is now in the offing. | The Yemeni government has requested that its citizens be returned to its territory. Holder's comments at the hearing suggest a rethink of this block is now in the offing. |
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