Al Jazeera Cameraman Freed From Guantanamo After Six Years

Khartoum, Sudan - An Al-Jazeera cameraman was released from US custody at Guantanamo Bay and returned home to Sudan early Friday after six years of imprisonment that drew worldwide protests.

Sami al-Haj arrived at the airport in Sudan's capital, Khartoum, on a US military plane along with two other Sudanese released from Guantanamo.

Al-Haj was the only journalist from a major international news organization held at Guantanamo and many of his supporters saw his detention as punishment for a network whose broadcasts angered U.S. officials.

The military alleged he was a courier for a militant Muslim organization, an allegation his lawyers denied.

"It was a big surprise for the family," al-Haj's brother Assem said, with tears in his eyes as he stood at Khartoum airport waiting for his brother's arrival. "Finally the day has come to see him freed."

Al-Haj was detained in December 2001 by Pakistani authorities as he tried to enter Afghanistan to cover the U.S.-led invasion. He was turned over to the U.S. military and taken in January 2002 to Guantanamo Bay, where the United States holds some 275 men suspected of links to al-Qaida and the Taliban, most of them without charges.