434 Afghan Detainees Win Prison Transfer

[Snazzy]

434 Afghan Detainees Win Prison Transfer

Thu May 6, 4:56 PM ET

By BURT HERMAN, Associated Press Writer

SHIBERGHAN, Afghanistan - Shackled and under guard, 434 alleged Taliban and al-Qaida fighters shuffled out of Afghanistan (news - web sites)'s most notorious prison Thursday, winning transfer to a Kabul jail after a weeklong hunger strike to protest being held without charges for nearly 2 1/2 years.

The U.S.-backed government promised they would get speedy trials and said those cleared of major offenses were expected to be freed soon.

Long before the uproar over allegations of Iraqi detainees being abused by American troops, Shiberghan's prison gained a reputation for brutality under the control of northern warlord Abdul Rashid Dostum.

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The 236 Pakistanis and 198 Afghans taken away were among the last detainees from nearly 3,600 men once held at the prison in this northern city, leaving only 70 inmates convicted of non-terrorism charges, officials said. The men were being taken to join some 440 detainees moved to Kabul's Pul-e-Charki prison earlier this week.


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http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=535&e=8...

(quick--clean it up. Cover it up.)