Guantanamo Bay: Briton Shaker Aamer released after 13 years in US military prison

Shaker Aamer, the last British resident being held in Guantanamo Bay, has been released and will return to the UK, sources told Sky News.

The charity Reprieve reported on Friday (30 October) that a plane carrying Aamer has already left Cuba bound for the UK. There has been no official confirmation of the release.

On Tuesday, Andy Worthington, co-director of charity We Stand With Shaker, told Middle Eastern Eye that Aamer would probably be released by the end of the week.

The 46-year-old was taken into custody by the US in 2001, and accused of being an al-Qaeda financier and recruiter. His supporters protest his innocence, and claim he was kidnapped by ransom hunters in Afghanistan.

He had been held without charge at the US detention facility in Cuba for 13 years. Aamer is a Saudi citizen with UK residency and a wife and four children in the UK. His release follows campaigning by high profile figures including Roger Waters of rock band Pink Floyd.