Last Western detainee at Guantanamo released
1 Oct 2012 12:43 AM GMT
Omar Ahmed Khadr, the youngest prisoner and last Westerner held at the US military prison in Guantanamo Bay for terror suspects has returned to Canada after a decade in custody following his capture in Afghanistan when he was just 15.
‘Omar Ahmed Khadr was transferred from the detention facility at Naval Station Guantanamo Bay, Cuba to Canada,’ the US Department of Defence said in a statement.
‘The United States Government has returned Khadr to Canada where he will serve out his remaining sentence,’ it said.
The 26-year-old Toronto-native struck a plea deal in 2010 that saw him sentenced to eight years in prison for five war crimes, including killing US special forces medic Christopher Speer 10 years ago in firefight in Khost, Afghanistan. He was 15 when he was captured in 2002.
Announcing Khadr’s arrival in the country, Canadian Public Safety Minister Vic Toews said that Khadr has been flown to a military base in Trenton, Ontario and transferred to the province’s Millhaven maximum-security prison.
‘Omar Khadr was born in Canada and is a Canadian citizen. As a Canadian citizen, he has a right to enter Canada after the completion of his sentence,’ Toews told reporters in Winnipeg on Saturday.
‘This transfer occurs following a process initiated by the United States government and determined in accordance with Canadian law,’ he said.
Despite green-lighting the repatriation, Toews expressed several concerns about the case, Toronto Sun reported.
These included that Khadr has ‘had very little contact with Canadian society and therefore will require substantial management in order to ensure safe reintegration’ and that he has ‘participated in terrorist training, military operations, and meetings involving Al Qaeda leadership.’
‘Omar Ahmed Khadr was transferred from the detention facility at Naval Station Guantanamo Bay, Cuba to Canada,’ the US Department of Defence said in a statement.
‘The United States Government has returned Khadr to Canada where he will serve out his remaining sentence,’ it said.
The 26-year-old Toronto-native struck a plea deal in 2010 that saw him sentenced to eight years in prison for five war crimes, including killing US special forces medic Christopher Speer 10 years ago in firefight in Khost, Afghanistan. He was 15 when he was captured in 2002.
Announcing Khadr’s arrival in the country, Canadian Public Safety Minister Vic Toews said that Khadr has been flown to a military base in Trenton, Ontario and transferred to the province’s Millhaven maximum-security prison.
‘Omar Khadr was born in Canada and is a Canadian citizen. As a Canadian citizen, he has a right to enter Canada after the completion of his sentence,’ Toews told reporters in Winnipeg on Saturday.
‘This transfer occurs following a process initiated by the United States government and determined in accordance with Canadian law,’ he said.
Despite green-lighting the repatriation, Toews expressed several concerns about the case, Toronto Sun reported.
These included that Khadr has ‘had very little contact with Canadian society and therefore will require substantial management in order to ensure safe reintegration’ and that he has ‘participated in terrorist training, military operations, and meetings involving Al Qaeda leadership.’
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