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NewsSeven years on, what happened to the two Yemeni men who came...

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Seven years on, what happened to the two Yemeni men who came to Ghana from Guantanamo Bay?

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Seven years ago, Ghana received two former detainees from the notorious Guantanamo Bay prison in Cuba, as part of a deal with the United States.

The two men, Mahmud Umar Muhammad Bin Atef and Khalid Muhammad Salih Al-Dhuby, were Yemeni citizens who had spent 14 years in captivity without charge or trial.

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They were accused of being members of al-Qaeda and enemy combatants, but they denied any involvement in terrorism.

They were given a two-year agreement to stay in Ghana as refugees, subject to security clearances and humanitarian considerations.

They were also given some financial assistance and medical care by the US government.

However, their presence in Ghana sparked controversy and opposition from some political and religious groups, who feared that they could pose a security or moral threat to the country.

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In 2018, the two-year agreement expired, but the Ghanaian government decided to let them remain in the country indefinitely, as there was no exit arrangement in the original deal and returning them to Yemen was not an option due to the ongoing civil war and humanitarian crisis there.

The Foreign Affairs Minister of Ghana, Shirley Ayorkor Botchway, said that the two men had become the responsibility of Ghana and that they had not caused any trouble during their stay.

The current whereabouts and activities of the two men are not publicly known, as they have been living under tight security and protection by the Ghanaian authorities. They have not given any interviews or statements to the media since their arrival in Ghana.

There is not much information about what the two men are doing now, as they have kept a low profile and avoided public attention.

However, some reports suggest that they have been trying to integrate into the Ghanaian society and culture, learning English and Twi, making friends with locals, attending mosques, and looking for jobs.

One of them, Khalid al-Dhuby, is also reported to have married a Ghanaian woman and started a family.

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