Abdul Aziz Naji was transferred from the military prison
in Cuba to Algeria against his will, having said he feared persecution. A US
based rights group said Wednesday he had gone missing and could be in secret
detention.
US President Barack Obama has made a commitment to close
down the Guantanamo Bay prison and any evidence that former detainees are
mistreated after they are released and sent home could make it harder for him
to meet that target.
"It is out of the question that this person has been
detained in Algeria," said Farouk Ksentini, chairman of Algeria's National
Consultative Commission for the Promotion and Protection of Human Rights, a
state body.
"I formally deny this information, which in my view
does not make any sense," Ksentini told Reuters, though he added that he
did not know Naji's whereabouts.
