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US releases 2 Pakistani brothers from Guantanamo Bay after 21 years, no terror charges prove against them

By Mashal Khan

ISLAMABAD (AA) - The US has returned two Pakistani brothers to Islamabad after 21 years without proves any terrorism charges against them at the Guantanamo Bay military prison.

In a statement, the US Defense Department said Abdul Rabbani and Mohammed Rabbani were the latest detainees to be released from U.S. custody as the U.S. moves toward emptying and shutting down the prison.

The two brothers were arrested in Karachi in 2002 during the former dictator Pervaiz Musharraf government and handed over to the US.

The then US President George W. Bush administration set it up at a naval base in Cuba for suspected militants and they shifted thousand people from Afghanistan and Pakistan.

Many of them were released after spending one or two decades without proved any terror charges against the,.

"On January 18, 2023, Secretary of Defense Austin notified Congress of his intent to repatriate Abdul and Mohammed Rabbani to the Government of Pakistan, and, in consultation with the Pakistani partners, we completed the requirements for transfer," said the Defense Department in its statement.

"The United States appreciates the willingness of the Government of Pakistan and other partners to support ongoing U.S. efforts focused on responsibly reducing the detainee population and ultimately closing the Guantanamo Bay facility," its added.

The PRB [Periodic Review Board ] process was established by the President's March 7, 2011, Executive Order 13567. It is consistent with section 1023 of the National Defense Authorization Act for fiscal year 2012 and affirmed in Executive Order 13823 (January 30, 2018).

The PRB panel consists of one senior career official each from the Department of Defense, Homeland Security, Justice, and State, along with the Joint Staff and the Office of the Director of National Intelligence, according to the statement.

Today, 32 detainees remain at Guantanamo Bay: 18 are eligible for transfer; 3 are eligible for a Periodic Review Board; 9 are involved in the military commissions process; and 2 remaining detainees have been convicted in military commissions.