Pentagon: US frees five Guantanamo prisoners

US officials said on Wednesday that five men had been freed from the detention center at the Guantanamo Bay naval base, after it was determined it was no longer necessary to hold them in custody.

All five of the men, from Yemen, were said to have been captured in Pakistan and were detained as suspected al Qaeda fighters.

Four of the men were being relocated in Oman, with one sent to Estonia, the Pentagon said. It is the first time that either nation has agreed to accept former Guantanamo prisoners for resettlement.

The Pentagon said all five, held for a dozen or more years at Guantanamo, had been cleared for release nearly five years ago by a task force of intelligence, diplomatic and military officials. However, authorities were unable to send the men to Yemen because of instability there.

The men are all in their 30s and 40s, and include one who was 17 when he was sent to the detention facility.

When US President Barack Obama came into office, he pledged to close Guantanamo and transfer prisoners to the US, but was blocked by Congress.

There are currently 122 prisoners at Guantanamo - down from a peak of nearly 800 - including 54 who have been approved for transfer. Of those cleared to leave, 47 are Yemeni.

Republicans in the US Congress this week introduced legislation to restrict the transfer of certain detainees to foreign countries, claiming that roughly 30 percent of those released have shown recidivism.

rc/ksb (AFP, AP Reuters)