U.S. sends home 33 detainees

WASHINGTON – Thirty-three detainees who had been held at the U.S. military detention facility in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, were returned to their home countries over the past week, part of a government effort to reduce the facility’s population to a core group of terror suspects who could be held indefinitely.

The Defense Department announced Sunday that it transferred 17 detainees to their home countries over the weekend: seven to Afghanistan, five to Yemen, three to Kazakhstan, one to Libya and another to Bangladesh. Military officials announced Thursday that 16 detainees were recently sent to Saudi Arabia.

With the transfer of the 33 detainees, Guantanamo now holds about 395 detainees, almost all of whom have never been charged with a crime.