SANAA, 19 March 2004 — In exchange for the extradition of five wanted Saudi men, Riyadh is handing over to Sanaa 13 Yemenis sought by authorities here for terror connections, Yemeni officials said yesterday. A security official was quoted by the Yemeni Defense Ministry’s 26 September weekly newspaper as saying the security swap would be carried out “within the next 48 hours.”
The official said all 13 wanted Yemenis had been arrested in the Kingdom under a warrant issued by the Yemeni Interior Ministry, adding that “most of those men are accused in terror cases.”
The official, who was not identified, said among the men to be sent back to Yemen was “one of the most dangerous terrorist elements.”
Yemen, in return, will hand over five Saudi nationals wanted by the Kingdom in various security cases, according to the official.
The two countries have already swapped dozens of suspects wanted on terror and criminal charges in recent months.
Guantanamo Detainees
A high-profile Yemeni security team is expected to visit some 109 Yemeni prisoners at the US detention camp in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.
The team, comprised of senior officials from the Interior Ministry and intelligence services, will check the conditions of the Yemeni detainees and help interrogate them, according security officials.
The detainees are among about 650 prisoners of various nationalities captured during and after the war in Afghanistan, which led to the ousting of the Taleban regime.
The US says they are “enemy combatants” and denies them rights accorded prisoners of war under the Geneva Convention.
