Pentagon Confirms Guantanamo Bay Detainee Sufyian Barhoumi Repatriated to Native Algeria

Sufyian Barhoumi, 48, was initially captured in Pakistan in March 2002, and has remained at the Guantanamo Bay detention facility in Cuba for nearly two decades. Barhoumi did not face trial during his detention, which appeared indefinite until August 2016, when the Algerian national was notified of his eligibility for repatriation.

The US Department of Defense confirmed in a Saturday announcement that Sufyian Barhoumi was successfully transferred from the Cuba-based detention facility to his native country of Algeria.

The 48-year-old Algerian national is subject to security and “humane treatment assurances” following his stint, according to the Pentagon’s memo, citing conversations with foreign counterparts.

“The United States appreciates the willingness of Algeria, and other partners to support ongoing US efforts toward a deliberate and thorough process focused on responsibly reducing the detainee population and ultimately closing of the Guantanamo Bay facility,” the readout detailed.

The move comes more than five years after a Periodic Review Board (PRB) process “determined that law of war detention of Mr. Barhoumi was no longer necessary to protect against a continuing significant threat to the national security of the United States.”

Sufyian Barhoumi, an Algerian national previously detained at the US' Guantanamo Bay detention facility, was released and repatriated to home country, according to a Pentagon announcement on April 2. Barhoumi's transfer was notably sidelined during the Trump administration, resulting in five years of delays that ultimately blocked Barhoumi from being reunited with his father before he passed.

© Twitter/Moazzam Begg

The PRB process was established by an executive order issued on March 7, 2011, by then-US President Barack Obama. The panel is made up of one senior official representing the Pentagon, US Homeland Security Department, Department of Justice, State Department, as well as a representation from the Joint Staff and Office of the Director of National Intelligence.

Officials selected for the administrative procedure are granted veto power over any recommendation.

The Algerian national’s transfer did not appear to be a top priority of Trump administration officials, as the matter was continually sidelined due to policy at the time. Trump, during his first presidential campaign, notably vowed to fill up the detention center with war criminals.

In 2017, then-Defense Secretary Ash Carter claimed that Barhoumi was not relocated to his home country due to “a variety of substantive concerns, shared by multiple agencies.” Per the PRB report, Barhoumi told the US that he was not affiliated with the Taliban* or al-Qaeda* affiliation, although he did admit to engaging in extremist activities.

Barhoumi’s repatriation process did not officially kick off until February 4, when US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin notified Congress of the department’s intent to repatriate Barhoumi to Algeria. By then, the detainee had been informed of his father’s passing.

Of the 37 detainees who remain at Guantanamo Bay, 18 are eligible for transfer; seven are eligible for a PRB; 10 are tied to ongoing military commissions process; and two have been convicted via the process.

Confirmation of Barhoumi’s repatriation marks the second transfer this year, and third repatriation from the detention facility since US President Joe Biden took office.

*terrorist organizations outlawed in Russia and many other states

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