The oldest Guantánamo Bay prisoner is released by the United States

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Pakistan receives the release of Guantánamo Bay’s oldest prisoner. Saifullah Paracha, 75, spent 18 years in detention at the American institution without ever being prosecuted. On Saturday, he arrived in Pakistan. PUBLIC SECURITY

On April 7, 2004, near Guantánamo Bay, Cuba, the entrance to Camp Delta, where detainees from the American war in Afghanistan reside, is pictured. Getty Images/Joe Raedle remove caption

switch to caption Getty Images/Joe Raedle On April 7, 2004, near Guantánamo Bay, Cuba, the entrance to Camp Delta, where detainees from the American war in Afghanistan reside, is pictured.

Getty Images/Joe Raedle Saifullah Paracha, a 75-year-old Pakistani man who spent 18 years being held without trial in the U.S. military prison at Guantánamo Bay, Cuba, has been released and has returned to his country, the Department of Defense announced on Saturday.

Paracha, a former businessman and TV producer, was designated arrested by American officials in 2003 on the basis of suspicions that he had ties to al-Qaida. The Periodic Review Board at Guantánamo concluded that Paracha no longer posed a serious threat to the United States last year.

confirmed Paracha arrived in Pakistan on Saturday, and the country’s foreign ministry expressed its happiness at his “finally being reunited with his family.”

This year, Paracha, who is at least an the fourth person , was freed from Guantánamo. It is a component of President Biden’s initiatives to decrease the number of inmates at Guantánamo and eventually shut down the prison.

The Department of Defense reports that 35 prisoners are still being held at Guantánamo Bay as a result of Paracha’s return home. Three are eligible for a review board, while twenty are eligible for transfer. Three inmates have been found guilty by the military commission, and nine more people are involved.

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