Oldest Pakistani Guantanamo Bay prisoner returns home

ISLAMABAD: Pakistani national and oldest prisoner detained at Guantanamo Bay, Saifullah Paracha, finally reached home after being released, the foreign office (FO) confirmed on Saturday.

According to a press release by foreign office, the detained Saif Ullah Paracha reached Pakistan on Saturday after he was released from the infamous Guantanamo Bay detention camp.

The foreign office said that a thorough and extensive inter-agency process was carried out which resulted in the release of the detained Pakistani national.

Mr. Paracha, who was detained in Guantanamo Bay 🇺🇸 , has been released & reached 🇵🇰 on Saturday. The Foreign Ministry completed an extensive inter-agency process to facilitate repatriation of Mr. Paracha. We are glad that a citizen detained abroad is reunited with his family. https://t.co/VSTOTAbuMP

— BilawalBhuttoZardari (@BBhuttoZardari) October 29, 2022

The ministry further said in its statement that “We are glad that a Pakistani citizen detained abroad is finally reunited with his family.”

Earlier, a US prisoner review board approved Saifullah Paracha for release, a 73-year-old prisoner in Guantanamo Bay detention centre.

Saifullah Paracha from Pakistan has been in custody for more than 16 years at the US base in Cuba, his lawyer said in a statement.

Paracha was held on suspicion of ties to Al Qaeda but never formally charged with a crime. He was cleared by the prisoner review board along with two other men, said Shelby Sullivan-Bennis, who represented him at the hearing in November.

A notification concluded that Paracha is “not a continuing threat” to the United States, the lawyer said.

It does not mean his release is imminent. But it is a crucial step before the US government negotiates a repatriation agreement with Pakistan for his return.

Saifullah Paracha’s lawyer said she thinks he will return home in the next several months. “The Pakistanis want him back, and our understanding is that there are no impediments to his return,” she added.

Paracha, who lived in the US was alleged by authorities to have suspected links with the Al Qaeda network.