US thanks Germany for taking 2 (read: two)Gitmo guys

[Dan D]

http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5jTF-7iPBkbKj3377UWAmpoH82D6g :

"We greatly appreciate Germany's decision to resettle these two detainees," State Department spokesman Mark Toner said after German authorities agreed to take the Palestinian and Syrian detainees.

US authorities cleared the two detainees for release after nearly nine years in detention without charge. Germany said the men posed no threat.

According to US government figures from early May, 181 detainees remain there including dozens already cleared for release. Most have been held without charge or trial.

Germany last year refused a separate request to take in two other ex-detainees, arguing that Washington had failed to provide sufficient background information on them.

It had previously rejected a US call to accept Chinese Uighur detainees."

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2 out of something like 181 detainees, that is wow!

If the US fails to resettle the remaining detainees somewhere else, in the end they will have to keep them.

tags: US immigration policy, Chinese Uighur

[AngusJS]

US authorities cleared the two detainees for release after nearly nine years in detention without charge. Germany said the men posed no threat.They were prisoners for 9 years without being charged with anything. Awesome.

Hopefully we'll let them fly 1st class, it's the least we can do.

Thank heavens we're still being protected from the Uighur menace, though.

:nope:

[Dan D]

HEy, it does not look that bad for the US:

At least the problem of the resettlement of the 17 Chinese Uighur detainees seems about to be solved despite Chinese protests over Uighur transfer ( http://english.aljazeera.net/news/asia-pacific/2010/03/20103259750420153.html)

“The recent transfer of the two Uighur brothers to Switzerland means there are now five Uighurs left at the Guantanamo camp.

Four others were resettled in Bermuda while Albania took five, and six went to the Pacific island of Palau, which has also offered to take the remaining five.

Beijing has demanded that all Uighurs held at Guantanamo be returned to China, saying they are suspected terrorists.

"We resolutely oppose the United States sheltering the suspects in a third country, and oppose any country taking them in in any way," Qin Gang, spokesman for the Chinese foreign ministry, told reporters in Beijing

But US officials say they cannot return the men to China because they may face persecution or even possibly execution by Chinese authorities.

As a result they have been stuck in legal limbo while US authorities try to find third countries willing to take the men in.”

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Switzerland has 2 more Muslims now, though.

Also, if the Pacific Island of Palau, which I did not even know that it existed, is willing to take 11 detainees then I think Germany as one of the closest allies of the US should not stand back and should take more than just 2 Gitmo Guys, if the price is right.

And finally, the social reintegration seems to work quite well in some cases:

A Chinese Uighur, Making Pizza in Albania -A former Guantanamo inmate has built a new life for himself, working in an Italian-style snack bar in Albania, along with four of his fellow Uighur Muslims. He's become a spokesman of sorts, and he hopes to go into business for himself. ( http://www.spiegel.de/international/world/0,1518,619649,00.html)