US say 11,000 Iraqi prisoners released
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The US military says it has released 11,000 detainees from its prisons in Iraq so far this year.
That exceeds the number of prisoners released during the whole of 2007.
In a statement the US military says the men freed this year were once considered a security threat but could now go on to lead productive lives.
The coalition goal of releasing 12,000 prisoners in 2008 will be reached by mid-September.
Most detainees in Iraq are held without charge or trial for an average of almost a year - a source of great anger for many Iraqis.
The US military says they are offered vocational training and can obtain what is described as a better understanding of Islam during their detention .
A military spokesman said the reinterment rate for prisoners was less than one per cent. But there are still thought to be about 47,000 detainees in US and Iraqi prisons.
- BBC
