U.S. transfers prisoner from Guantanamo to Britain

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Binyam Mohamed, the Ethiopian-born British resident whose rendition and torture allegations strained U.S.-UK relations, has been transferred from the Guantanamo Bay prison camp to Britain, the U.S. Justice Department said on Monday.

It said an interagency U.S. government panel had reviewed Mohamed's case and determined his transfer "is consistent with the national security and foreign policy interests of the United States and the interests of justice."

Mohamed is the first prisoner released from the U.S. military base in Cuba since President Barack Obama took office last month. All charges against Mohamed were dropped and he was never tried.

(Reporting by James Vicini, Editing by Bill Trott)