Bahraini Guantanamo detainee returns home

MANAMA, Oct 15 (Reuters) A Bahraini detainee at the US military prison at Guantanamo Bay returned home today and may face charges at a local court, Bahrain's foreign minister said.

Sheikh Khaled bin Ahmed al-Khalifa told the state news agency BNA that Bahrain was trying to secure the release of other Bahraini detainees and urged the United States to shut the prison, which holds suspected Taliban and al Qaeda members.

The minister identified the released man as Salah Abdulrahman al-Baloushi and said his case would be sent to the public prosecution.

''The government has prepared a comprehensive health and psychological programme to rehabilitate him and reintegrate him into society,'' the agency quoted Sheikh Khaled as saying.

Last November, Bahrain received three Bahrainis, one a member of the kingdom's royal family, after more than three years of captivity at Guantanamo Bay. The government said then the three were among six Bahrainis held at the military base.

Pro-Western Bahrain hosts the headquarters of the US Navy's Fifth Fleet.

The United States has faced international criticism over its indefinite detention of Guantanamo detainees, many held for more than four years without charges.

REUTERS SRS PM0145