Pentagon identifies 48 'indefinite detainees' at Guantanamo

WASHINGTON, June 18 (UPI) -- The U.S. government has identified 48 Guantanamo captives who can't be tried in a court of law but are too dangerous to transfer.

The list of the so-called "indefinite detainees," a closely held secret since 2009, was released to The Miami Herald by the Defense Department.

The release of the list is the result of a Freedom of Information suit the newspaper filed in federal court with the assistance of Yale Law School students.

In addition to the Herald, the Pentagon also gave the list to the Senate and House Armed Services Committees.

The men designated for indefinite detention include 26 Yemenis, 12 Afghans, three Saudis, two Kuwaitis, two Libyans, a Kenyan, a Moroccan and a Somali.

Some of the men on the list are among the prisoners currently on a hunger strike at the U.S. detention facility in Cuba and are being force-fed.

Two of the Afghans on the list are deceased. One committed suicide and the other died of a heart attack.

Among the reasons listed that the men can't stand trial are insufficient evidence, tainted evidence or vowing to engage in an attack upon release.