How Obama plans to transfer 18 ‘dangerous’ Guantanamo detainees – including men accused of being Al Qaeda bombmakers and 9/11 plotters – to Saudi Arabia before Trump becomes president

BARACK Obama is planning to transfer 18 more Guantanmo Bay detainees before Donald Trump takes over.

The group set to be released from the the base on Cuba include a senior al Qaeda bomb-maker, the jihadi groups top finance boss and two men intended to be 9/11 hijackers.

All the men have been held at the facility for over ten years.

A military source has claimed a total of 22 detainees are set to be transferred out of the controversial institution before Trump’s inauguration on January 20, reports.

Yesterday it was announced four would be transferred to Saudi Arabia: Yemenis Salem Ahmed Hadi, Mohammed Ghanim, Mohammed Bawazir, and Abdullah al Shabli.

But it has now been revealed three more rounds of transfers will take place before the outgoing President leaves the White House.

The Obama administration has not yet confirmed which inmates will leave the complex next, nor where they are being sent, but has indicated it is a priority for the President.

White House press secretary Josh Earnest said: “I can’t speak to any individual notifications that have been made to Congress or give you a specific preview about upcoming transfers.”

He added: “I would expect at this point additional transfers to be announced before January 20.”

The move will bring the President closer to his promise of eight years ago to close the controversial base.

But that move is strongly opposed by Republicans, including Donald Trump who has blasted the ambition as “dangerous”.

The President-elect wrote on Twitter this week: “There should be no further releases from Gitmo.

“These are extremely dangerous people who should not be allowed back on the battlefield.”

Those held at the base have been branded “the worst of the worst” by US intelligence and include the 9/11 mastermind Khalid Sheikh Mohammed and several former bodyguards of Osama bin Laden.

Of the remaining 59 detainees 23 have been “recommended for transfer” to foreign countries under certain conditions, but those requirements are vague.

US Department of Justice guidelines, state inmates can only be considered for continued detention at Guantanamo Bay if they meet three criteria: their continued detention is deemed “lawful,” they are unable to be prosecuted in a court, and they pose a security threat that “cannot be sufficiently mitigated through feasible and appropriate security measures.”

Prisoners who are not eligible for continued detention are recommended for transfer.

The list of those who have been cleared for transfer includes:

Mohammed al Ansi, 42, who was a previous bodyguard to Osama bin Laden and also trained suicide attackers.

Mohammed Ghanim, 42, who fought in Bosnia in the 90s and went on to guard bin Laden.

Haji Wali Mohammed, 50, chief of finance for al Qaeda who made his fortune as a currency dealer in Pakistan and then ran drugs before using the proceeds to fund terror, US officials claim.

Abdul Latif Nasir, 52, a close associate of bin Laden and a top instructor at al Qaeda training camps who helped the 9/11 mastermind Khalid Sheikh Mohammed escape.

Tawfiq al Bihani, 44, who made IEDs in Afghanistan for al Qaeda. He has threatened to kill the President and US citizens if he is ever released.

Ridah al Yazidi, 51, the so called “Emir” of al Qaeda’s Tunisian arm who also fought in Afghanistan.

Yasin Ismail, 38, commander of al Qaeda forces north of Kabul who operated in the caves bin Laden hid in. The Yemini is said to have assaulted guards inside the base and was previously assessed as too dangerous for release.

Sufyian Barhoumi, 43, who was recruited by Abu Qatada in London. He became a top bomb expert and was captured in Pakistan in 2002.

We pay for your stories! Do you have a story for The Sun Online news team? Email us at tips@the-sun.co.uk or call 0207 782 4368