Home minister: Malaysia accepts return of Guantanamo detainees with reintegration plan

Home minister: Malaysia accepts return of Guantanamo detainees with reintegration plan



In this file photo taken on January 26, 2017, a guard tower is seen outside the fencing of Camp 5 at the US military’s prison in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. — AFP pic

Wednesday, 18 Dec 2024 3:44 PM MYT


KUALA LUMPUR, Dec 18 — The United States government has repatriated two Malaysians who had been held at Guantanamo Bay for 18 years.

Home Minister Datuk Seri Saifuddin Nasution Ismail confirmed that Malaysia had accepted their return on human rights grounds.


“The government has drawn up a comprehensive reintegration programme for the two Malaysians,” he said in a statement, adding that the programme includes support, welfare, and health checkups to ensure their smooth reintegration into society.

In the same statement, Saifuddin Nasution also expressed gratitude towards the various agencies involved in facilitating the handover process.


“The Home Ministry thanks the various agencies involved in realising the handing over process for the two Malaysians,” he said.


Although Saifuddin Nasution’s statement did not name the individuals, it has been widely reported that they are Mohamad Farik Amin, 48, and Mohammed Nazir Lep, 47.

Both men were arrested in Thailand in 2003, linked to the 2002 Bali bombings that claimed 202 lives.

Farik and Nazir had not faced trial until earlier this year. In January, both men reached a plea agreement under which they admitted to charges of being accessories to the Bali bombings.

As part of the deal, they also provided testimony against the mastermind behind the attacks, Encep Nurjaman, also known as Hambali, the former leader of the Jemaah Islamiyah terror group, an affiliate of Al-Qaeda.

In exchange, US military judge Lt. Col. Wesley A. Braun sentenced the duo to five years in prison after a brief trial.