Algerians held at Guantanamo Bay are acquitted back home
Two Algerians held at Guantanamo Bay for seven years after the 11 September 2001 attacks on the US have been acquitted at a trial in their home country. The men were arrested in Afghanistan by Pakistani police, but denied having any connection to militant groups and said they were tortured in US custody. Algeria's state prosecutor called for a 20-year jail term for the men, so it seems as if the judge didn’t see eye to eye with him. Closing down Guantanamo Bay was a key pledge in US President Barack Obama’s election campaign. But the deadline of January 2010 looks to have shifted to later in the year. Some 215 detainees are still being held at the prison in Cuba. They will be tried in US courts, or repatriated or resettled if they are not perceived as a threat. Read more: BBC News
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