Oldest prisoner freed from Guantanamo, back home in Pakistan

Mr. Saifullah Paracha was reunited with his family after more than 17 years in custody in the U.S. base in Cuba

A 74-year-old from Pakistan who was the oldest prisoner at the Guantanamo Bay detention centre was released and returned to Pakistan on Saturday, the foreign ministry in Islamabad said.

Mr. Saifullah Paracha was reunited with his family after more than 17 years in custody in the U.S. base in Cuba, the ministry added.

Saifullah had been held on suspicion of ties to al-Qaida since 2003, but was never charged with a crime.

Last year in May, he was notified that he had been approved for release. He was cleared by the prisoner review board, along with two other men in November 2020.

As is customary, the notification did not provide detailed reasoning for the decision and concluded only that Paracha is “not a continuing threat” to the United States, according to Shelby Sullivan-Bennis, who represented him at his hearing at the time.

In Pakistan, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said it had completed an extensive inter-agency process to facilitate Saifullah’s repatriation.

“We are glad that a Pakistani citizen detained abroad is finally reunited with his family,” the ministry said.