US In Talks With Bern On Guantanamo Bay Prisoner Transfer To Switzerland - Official

GENEVA (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 15th February, 2023) The United States is discussing the transfer of prisoners from its notorious Guantanamo Bay detention camp to Switzerland, but there has been no official request yet, Swiss Foreign Ministry spokesperson Valentin Clivaz told Sputnik.

"The reception of prisoners currently held at Guantanamo Bay is a topic that the US occasionally discusses with Switzerland, but the US has not made a formal request to Switzerland," Clivaz said.

The spokesman declined to specify under which status the prisoners in question could be transferred to Switzerland, since there is no signed agreement yet.

Switzerland had already accepted three Guantanamo Bay detainees in 2009 and 2010, in order to facilitate the closure of this controversial detention camp.

According to the Pentagon, 34 detainees remain at Guantanamo Bay to date, with 20 of them eligible for transfer to another place of detention.

The Guantanamo Bay military prison for international terrorists was established within the US's Guantanamo Bay Naval Base on Cuba after the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks. Representatives of international organizations, including the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe, the United Nations and Amnesty International appealed to the new US administration to speed up the closure of the Guantanamo Bay camp amid continuing reports regarding the torture of prisoners and human rights violations there.