4 Chinese Gitmo Detainees Freed to Bermuda

(NEWSER) - Palau’s president Johnson Toribiong today said five of the 13 Uighurs held at Guantanamo Bay and set to be resettled in his country don't want to go, AFP reports. “A handful may not come,” he said. A recent delegation from the country to Gitmo met with just eight of the Chinese Muslims, who were cleared of wrongdoing four years ago. The other five refused interviews. More»

Island nation's move resolves key camp-closing concern

(AP) - Palau agreed to accept 17 Chinese Muslims who have languished in legal limbo at Guantanamo Bay, indicating a resolution to one of the thorniest issues facing the Obama administration's decision to close the prison camp. The announcement, which would clear the last of the Uighurs from the camp, was a major step toward finding new homes for detainees who have been cleared of wrongdoing but cannot go home for fear of ill-treatment. More»

(AP) - The Supreme Court will hear a new case about the rights of Guantanamo detainees, this time involving prisoners who remain in custody even after the Pentagon determines they're not a threat to the United States, the court said today. Last year, the court said in a 5-4 ruling that federal judges could ultimately order some detainees to be released, depending on security concerns and other circumstances. More»

(NEWSER) - The Chinese Muslims freed from Guantanamo last week had never heard of al-Qaeda before arriving in Cuba, one of them tells the Royal Gazette of Bermuda. "From what we have heard about them, they are an extremely radical group, with totally different ideals from ours," said Salahidin Abdulahad, who arrived in Bermuda last week with three other Uighurs. "We are a peace-loving people." More»

(NEWSER) - The 17 Uighurs being held at Guantanamo issued a challenge to the Supreme Court today in petitioning for their release, the Miami Herald reports. "The historic role of the Judicial Branch is to demand the release of prisoners precisely when the political branches find release inconvenient," their petition reads. A district court judge ordered the men—Chinese Muslims deemed terrorists by their own country and apprehended in Afghanistan in 2001—released 8 months ago. More»