Guantanamo release
- 00:01:21
- ITN
Guantanamo release
A British resident held at Guantanamo Bay for four years could be released later, according to reports. Lawyers for Binyam Mohamed are trying to sort out arrangements to get him back to the UK. The 30-year-old sparked controversy last month by going on hunger strike in protest. He drew international attention with his assertions that he was tortured while in CIA custody. Mohamed has been in US custody for nearly seven years. He was held and interrogated in Pakistan and Morocco before being sent to Guantanamo. His release to Britain, news of which was leaked to the Times newspaper by his lawyers and British officials, ends an 18-month stand-off between Washington and London. But it will not end an effort by Mohamed and his lawyers to obtain photographs Mohamed said were taken by an American woman showing injuries he claims were inflicted by torture in the course of interrogation. US officials originally said Mohamed was part of a conspiracy to detonate a dirty bomb on American soil, but all charges against him were eventually dismissed. US Embassy officials in London have refused to comment on the case, saying they could not talk about future Guantanamo releases as a matter of policy. The dispute over Mohamed's status involved US demands that he be placed under electronic surveillance and other controls in Britain. Mohamed and his attorneys eventually agreed to restrictions including a prohibition on travel to the US, according to reports.
ITN | February 23, 2009
