Two Guantanamo Bay detainees repatriated to Pakistan after 20 years with no charges

Abdul and Mohammed Rabbani were accused of helping Al Qaeda with housing and other logistical support

The US announced Abdul and Mohammed Rabbani were released from Guantanamo Bay and returned to their home country of Pakistan. AP

Two Pakistani brothers, Abdul and Mohammed Rabbani, were released from Guantanamo Bay and returned home, officials have said.

Pakistani Senator Mushtaq Ahmad Khan tweeted on Friday that the two arrived at Islamabad International Airport on Friday.

US officials accused the brothers of helping Al Qaeda members with housing and other logistical support. They were transferred to US custody after Pakistani officials arrested them in Karachi in 2002.

“The United States appreciates the willingness of the government of Pakistan and other partners to support ongoing US efforts focused on responsibly reducing the detainee population and ultimately closing the Guantanamo Bay facility,” the Pentagon said in a statement.

The Pentagon did not provide details on the conditions of the brothers' release.

Mr Khan said the Rabbanis were “innocently imprisoned” at the detention centre in Cuba.

“There was no trial, no court proceedings, no charges against them. Congratulations on their release,” he said in a tweet.

The brothers' release comes weeks after Majid Khan, a Pakistani Al Qaeda courier, was repatriated from Guantanamo Bay to Belize.

The Rabbanis' release brings the number of detainees currently held at Guantanamo to 32. Eighteen detainees are eligible for transfer, three are eligible for review, nine are on trial and two have been convicted in military commissions.

Agencies contributed to this report