Washington - The Pentagon announced Wednesday that two detainees at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba have been transferred to other countries.

The Pentagon did not identify the detainees, but said one was sent to Sudan and the other to Algeria. The Pentagon usually transfers detainees once concluding they no longer pose a security threat or can provide useful information.

There are about 60 prisoners of the 255 at Guantanamo that have been determined to be eligible for transfer or release, but the US government has struggled to find countries willing to take them.

Among them are 17 Chinese Muslims the United States refuses to send to China over concerns they will be subject to abuse. Years ago the Pentagon determined the men could be released but no country has agreed to take them.

A federal judge on Tuesday ordered the Bush administration release the Uighurs in the United States, stating they cannot be held indefinitely while the government seeks out a third country.

District Judge Ricardo Urbina gave the Bush administration until Friday to release them in the United States, but the Justice Department said it will appeal the decision.

The Pentagon years ago cleared the Uighurs for release, but maintains they were associated with the Taliban and al-Qaeda in Afghanistan and had received weapons training. (dpa)