news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20061..._allies_dc
U.S. allies impede Guantanamo releases:
Tue Oct 17, 1:00 AM ET
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Britain and other U.S. allies have demanded closure of the U.S. military prison at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, but have also blocked efforts to let some prisoners return home, The Washington Post reported on Tuesday.
British officials recently rejected a U.S. offer to transfer 10 former British residents from Guantanamo to the United Kingdom, arguing that it would be too expensive to keep them under surveillance, the newspaper said, citing documents made public this month in London.
Britain has also staved off a legal challenge by the relatives of some prisoners who sued to require the British government to seek their release, The Washington Post said.
While all British citizens in Guantanamo were freed starting in 2004, Britain has balked at allowing former legal residents of the country to return, the newspaper said.
Germany and other European allies, which have spoken out against Guantanamo, also have balked at accepting prisoners from the facility, the Post said.
Human rights groups have condemned U.S. practices at Guantanamo, where detainees have been held indefinitely without charge.
Some 335 prisoners have been transferred out of Guantanamo since the prison camp's creation in January 2002 and another 110 of the 440 still at the jail have been declared eligible for transfer or release, the
Pentagon said.
The Pentagon has already freed all but a few European citizens from Guantanamo. However, U.S. officials have struggled to persuade Britain, Germany and other allies in Europe to accept prisoners who once had legal residency there, or who are effectively stateless, The Washington Post said.
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I am lacking the words to describe how utterly insane such this situation appears. It's like the hippies who march to "Bring them home now, TROOPS OUT of Iraq" who also march to "End the Genocide in Darfur, SEND THE TROOPS", except it's nations instead of hippies...
We live in interesting times...
Jimro
I am lacking the words to describe how utterly insane such this situation appears. It's like the hippies who march to "Bring them home now, TROOPS OUT of Iraq" who also march to "End the Genocide in Darfur, SEND THE TROOPS", except it's nations instead of hippies...
Uh, the people saying they should be released are not the same people who are saying they shouldn't. The fact that they're from the same countries is completely meaningless.
I am, however, pleased to see that the US is making an effort to set these people free.
Or it's possible that if you'd experienced years and years of detainment in Gitmo, you'd come out hating the world and everyone in it.
These people are radioactive. No sane country would take them. You can't possibly expect the Europeans to clean up the mess that was made at Gitmo. Which country will be the first, when a former detainee snaps and does something violent, to experience a media firestorm that nobody wants? They're already trying to deal with the racial/religious tension that the war on terror has brought to the surface, and they most definitely don't need this.
So it's not as simple as saying "let them go home." But that doesn't excuse the decisions that led to their detention in their first place.
You would too if you were confined to a cell for a couple years.
Cycle,
Everyone in Gitmo is "confined to a cell" with allowed exercise periods. There is a requirement to provide food, there is a requirement to provide opportunities for physical exercise. There is no requirement to ensure the detainee is doing pushups.
However the average weight gain is a healthy 10 pounds, and the vast majority of prisoners were malnurished to some extent when they were detained.
Jimro
Everyone in Gitmo is "confined to a cell" with allowed exercise periods.
I couldn't help but notice your use of quotation marks. Are you attempting to imply something?
I can't exercize when I am depressed. Maybe they can't either. :<
Cycle,
The quotation marks are used used to quote your words. Did I really just write that?
Why? Did you infer something?
Jimro
Nevermind. I just got the idea that you felt the phrase "confined to a cell" was an inaccurate description of what exactly it means to be put in a jail.
