JURIST - Paper Chase: EU nations willing to take Guantanamo detainees: report

[JURIST] Ten European Union (EU) nations have agreed to accept Guantanamo Bay [JURIST news archive] detainees, and five more are giving the matter serious consideration, according to a Thursday Washington Post report [text]. While Britain, France, Ireland, Italy, Portugal, and Spain [JURIST reports] have all either taken or publicly agreed to take detainees, administration officials said four other countries have privately agreed to accept detainees. Five other countries have not yet committed to accepting detainees, but are considering it. Belgium has sent a delegation [press release] to visit the facility and interview a detainee for potential transfer, and a second European delegation is reportedly also visiting the facility this week. Dutch Prime Minister Jan Peter Balkenende [official profile] said last month that the Netherlands would be willing to consider [JURIST report] accepting Guantanamo Bay detainees, despite earlier statements to the contrary.

Earlier this week, it was reported that the Obama administration has notified Congress of plans to transfer six Guantanamo Bay [JURIST news archive] detainees out of the country. The notifications were reportedly filed August 7, in accordance with a new law that requires risk assessments and notification of transfers. One of the six detainees is Mohammed Jawad [ACLU materials; JURIST news archive], who will be repatriated to Afghanistan. The other five have not been identified, but two are expected to be sent to Ireland, two to Portugual [JURIST reports], and the sixth to an undecided nation.