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Last prisoner of Guantanamo Bay released

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IANS London

The last British resident being held in Guantanamo Bay prison is being returned to Britain, having been detained there for 13 years, the BBC reported on Friday.

A plane carrying Shaker Aamer, 46, is understood to be on its way to Britain, having left the US military base.

The Saudi national was held in the military prison in Cuba since 2002 but has never been charged or put on trial.

He was detained in Afghanistan in 2001. US authorities alleged he led a unit of Taliban fighters and had met slain Al Qaeda leader Osama Bin Laden.

But Aamer has maintained he was in Afghanistan with his family doing charity work.

 

Since 2007 he has been cleared for release twice, by US presidents George W. Bush and Barack Obama.

Aamer, who has four children, has permission to live indefinitely in Britain because his wife is a British national.

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First Published: Oct 30 2015 | 2:14 PM IST

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