The US Department of Defense has announced the release of Mohammed Abdul Malik Bajabu, a Kenyan man held at Guantanamo Bay, reducing the number of detainees at the controversial prison to 29.
Bajabu, who had been detained extrajudicially at the facility since his 2007 arrest, was repatriated to Kenya after authorities determined his continued detention was “no longer necessary to protect against a significant threat to US national security,” according to a Defense Department statement.
Bajabu had been accused of links to Al-Qaeda’s East Africa branch, though he was never formally charged.
Guantanamo Bay, which once housed nearly 800 detainees at its peak, now reportedly holds 29 prisoners. Of these, 15 are approved for transfer, three await reviews for potential release, seven are facing formal charges, and four have been convicted, the Pentagon said.
The release marks another step in efforts to wind down operations at the controversial detention facility, which has drawn widespread criticism for holding prisoners without trial for decades.
