Qureshi says 67 Pakistanis were held at Guantanamo Bay

Islamabad, Mar. 13 (ANI): A total of 67 Pakistanis were held at the Guantanamo Bay detention facility, Pakistan Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi has told the National Assembly.

Qureshi informed that 62 of 67 detainees had been released due to Pakistan's constant efforts.

Following the 9/11 terror attacks, scores of Pakistanis were picked up by local law enforcement agencies and handed over to the US authorities, and 67 of them ended up at the Guantanamo Bay, The Dawn reports.

Former President General Pervaiz Musharraf in his memoir 'In the Line of Fire' had accepted that the government earned millions of rupees as bounty after handing over the alleged terrorists to the US.

Soon after taking over as the US President, Barack Obama directed the CIA to shut the detention camp down within a year.

Qureshi told the house that as soon as the Pakistan Embassy in the US was informed of the arrest of its national, the concerned mission got the necessary information and request for consular access.

He said that most of the detainees hired their own attorneys or the concerned US authorities provided them legal aid. However, in cases where request is made for financial assistance, the Pakistan Government provides help. (ANI)