Eleven Yemeni detainees at Guantanamo Bay have been transferred to Oman, as part of ongoing efforts to reduce the detainee population at the military prison. This transfer was initiated by Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin, who notified Congress of the intent to transfer the detainees to Oman in September 2023.
The detainees who were transferred include Uthman Abd al-Rahim Muhammad Uthman, Moath Hamza Ahmed al-Alwi, Khalid Ahmed Qassim, Suhayl Abdul Anam al Sharabi, Hani Saleh Rashid Abdullah, Tawfiq Nasir Awad Al-Bihani, Omar Mohammed Ali al-Rammah, Sanad Ali Yislam Al Kazimi, Hassan Muhammad Ali Bib Attash, Sharqawi Abdu Ali Al Hajj, and Abd Al-Salam Al-Hilah. None of these men had been charged with a crime during their detention.
President Joe Biden has expressed a goal to close Guantanamo Bay, and with two weeks left in his term, there are 15 detainees remaining at the facility, with three eligible for transfer. At the beginning of the Biden administration, the facility held about 40 detainees.
One of the Yemeni men transferred, Khalid Ahmed Qassim, was reported to have been subjected to severe torture and mistreatment during his detention at various locations. Despite the challenges faced, his legal team expressed gratitude to the Biden Administration for facilitating his transfer to Oman.
In addition to the transfer to Oman, the US has also recently transferred four other Guantanamo Bay detainees to Kenya, Malaysia, and Tunisia. Furthermore, a military appeals court recently allowed plea deals for three alleged co-conspirators of the 9/11 attacks, including suspected mastermind Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, to proceed after initial attempts to reject the deals.
