Take responsibility, demands Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld.
Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld wants the State Department to put more pressure on countries to take custody of some of their people who are held at the US prison at Guantanamo Bay, a senior defense official said.
The military has transferred 65 prisoners from the prison in Cuba to their home countries, but some nations, not identified, have largely ignored American requests for transfers, officials said.
Spokesman Richard Boucher said the State Department is working with the Pentagon to identify detainees who no longer need to be held and work with other governments to ensure a smooth transfer.
Some 545 people from about 40 countries are held at Guantanamo Bay, many of them prisoners from the U.S.-led war in Afghanistan after the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks.
Already, the military has released 211 detainees from Guantanamo, including 146 who were freed outright. |
