Cuba, July 04: A US federal appeals court has demanded more evidence that a Guantanamo Bay detainee, held captive for over eight years, truly belongs to al-Qaeda.
Algerian Belkacem Bensayah was arrested in Bosnia with five other Bosnian-Algerian nationals in 2001.
He was accused of helping people who wanted to travel to Afghanistan to fight US forces.
A panel of the US Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit ruled that if US government prosecutors cannot present the proof, Bensayah must be released, Associated Press reported on Sunday.
The court said the government presented no direct evidence of actual communication between Bensayah and any al-Qaeda member.
The court also overturned a lower court’s decision upholding Bensayah’s detention.
Mark Fleming, representing Belkacem, called on the Obama administration to send his client back to Bosnia to his family. The administration has yet to decide on the case.
US government figures show 181 detainees still remain in the notorious Guantanamo detention center. Dozens of them have been held without charge or trial.
——Agencies