Guantanamo: Bin Laden's cook to be freed early

Osama Bin Laden's former cook and driver, who was convicted at a war crimes tribunal at Guantanamo, has had his prison sentence reduced from 14 years to two years by a Pentagon official.

Ibrahim al-Qosi, who was detained in Afghanistan in 2001, had admitted conspiracy and providing support for terrorism. An adviser to the military commission that tried him said Qosi had complied with the unspecified terms of a plea deal.

Qosi, one of the first terrorism suspects taken to Guantanamo in 2002, pleaded guilty in July to supporting terrorism by providing logistical support to al-Qa'ida.

The 50-year-old from Sudan faced up to life in prison if convicted at trial. The terms of his plea deal were not publicly revealed, and the Pentagon refused to confirm a report at the time from the Arabic broadcaster Al Arabiya that it had agreed to return him home after two years.

A military jury was convened to sentence Qosi in August. The 10 US officers on the panel were told that they could impose a sentence of between 12 and 15 years, but were not told the terms of the plea deal.

The final say rested with the Convening Authority, which reviews all actions taken in the tribunals. The Pentagon said that retired Navy Vice Admiral Bruce McDonald approved the sentence, but was suspending all but two years of it.