'Cleared' inmates still held at Guantamo
 Over a fifth of inmates cleared for release at the US detention center at Guantanamo Bay still remain there, reports the Washington Post.
"Since February, the Pentagon has notified about 85 inmates or their attorneys that they are eligible to leave after being cleared by military review panels. But only a handful have gone home, including a Moroccan and an Afghan who were released Tuesday. Eighty-two remain at Guantanamo and face indefinite waits as U.S. officials struggle to figure out when and where to deport them, and under what conditions," writes Craig Whitlock.
It was a lot easier to fill the Guantanamo prison than it has been to empty it, says the Washington Post.
In some cases, the countries of origin where the US would send cleared prisoners simply do not want to accept them back. Further, US laws do not allow the Bush administration to deport cleared inmates to countries where they could face torture.
"Compounding the problem are persistent refusals by the United States, its European allies and other countries to grant asylum to prisoners who are stateless or have no place to go," continues the article.
Excerpts follow:
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"In general, most countries simply do not want to help," said John B. Bellinger III, legal adviser to Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice. "Countries believe this is not their problem. They think they didn't contribute to Guantanamo, and therefore they don't have to be part of the solution."
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"The holdup is a mystery to me, frankly," said [Zachary] Katznelson, senior counsel for Reprieve, a British legal defense fund. "If the U.S. has cleared these people and they want to go back, I don't understand why they can't just put them on a plane."
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The 82 cleared prisoners who remain stuck in limbo come from 16 countries in the Middle East, North Africa and South Asia, according to defense attorneys who have received official notification of their clients' status.
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READ THE FULL WASHINGTON POST ARTICLE HERE
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