Feinstein – Halt Prisoner Transfers to Yemen

Published January 3, 2010 5:00am ET



Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif, is now among a bipartisan group of lawmakers who want President Obama to stop the transfer of six

Yemeni nationals detained at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, back to their home country.

Feinstein, who is chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee, said in a statement the transfer should be halted.

“Guantanamo detainees should not be released to Yemen at this time,” she said in a statement. “It is too unstable.”

Last week, Sens. Linsey Graham, R-S.C., John McCain, R-Ariz., and Joe Lieberman, I-Ct., sent a letter to President Obama

 calling such a transfer “highly unwise and ill-considered,” especially in the aftermath of the attempted bombing of the Detroit-bound flight 253

 on Christmas Day.

In the letter, the three senators reminded Obama that the attacker, Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab, told investigators he traveled to Yemen

for training and to get explosives for his attempted bombing, which was foiled by passengers.