US names 55 cleared Guantanamo prisoners

WASHINGTON (AFP) - The United States (US) government has published for the first time a list of 55 Guantanamo detainees cleared for release but still held amid challenges identifying a willing host country or concerns about sending them home.

The list, which includes names and serial numbers, represents about a third of the 167 "war on terror" suspects who still linger at the US naval base in southern Cuba more than 11 years after the Sept 11, 2001 attacks on US soil.

A significant number of the men listed are Yemenis, reflecting US concerns over sending Guantanamo detainees to the troubled nation, where they could become involved in terror-related activities.

President Barack Obama suspended transfers to Yemen in January 2010, citing the "unsettled" security situation there.