The president of Palau has confirmed that at least four Chinese Muslims detained at Guantánamo Bay in Cuba have been granted permission to temporarily settle in the Pacific island nation.

The four Chinese are part of a group of Uighurs who were detained by US troops in Afghanistan after the attacks of 11 September 2001. They were arrested at a camp in Afghanistan and accused of being involved in terrorism. The Uighurs have always said they had fled persecution in China. They are no longer suspects but have nowhere to go. The US government does not want to send them back to China fearing they may be subjected to torture there. Palau has tried to break the impasse by offering at least temporary asylum.