Pakistan announced this Saturday the release and arrival in Islamabad of a Pakistani citizen held by the United States at the naval base in Guantanamo, Cuba, who is the oldest inmate in that prison at 75 years old.
“Saif Ullah Paracha, a Pakistani national detained in Guantanamo Bay, has been released and arrived in his home country on Saturday, October 29, 2022,” the Pakistani government said in a brief statement.
Thus, according to the document, Pakistan’s foreign ministry has “concluded an extensive inter-institutional process to facilitate the repatriation of Paracha”.
“We are delighted that a Pakistani national who was detained abroad has finally been reunited with his family,” the Islamabad government added.
The man, who spent nearly 20 years in custody without a formal charge, was “the oldest inmate” in the US detention center, Pakistani and US media reported.
Paracha was an American businessman with a thriving business and wealth in Pakistan when he was arrested in Thailand in 2003..
US officials alleged that Paracha was an al-Qaida “facilitator” who helped two of the September 11, 2001 conspirators in a financial transaction, a claim Pakistani citizens have always denied.
Paracha was held for over a year at the US base in Bagram, Afghanistan, and then transferred by the US to Guantánamo.
The businessman’s detention was fraught with additional procedures and transfers due to health problems, which worsened in prison due to age, with specialists being sent for medical treatment.
The US government, led by Joe Biden, authorized the transfer of Paracha and two other detainees from Guantánamo in May 2021.
Source: DN
