The US military says it has released 23 Afghan and three Pakistani citizens from its Guantanamo Bay detention centre in Cuba.
They were flown back to their home countries aboard US aircraft. Some 610 remain in custody at the Guantanamo base.
In a brief statement, the Pentagon did not say specifically why the 26 were released but said each case is reviewed separately to determine whether a prisoner is of further intelligence value to the US and whether he is believed to pose a threat.
"The circumstances in which detainees are apprehended can be ambiguous, and many of them are highly skilled in concealing the truth," the statement said.
US Defence Secretary Mr Donald Rumsfeld disclosed last week that one released terrorist suspect had rejoined the fight against the United States, but Pentagon officials refused to elaborate.
Last week the US government released five British prisoners from Guantanamo Bay, and a total of about 100 have been let go or transferred to other governments in recent months.
Two weeks ago, seven Russians held at Guantanamo Bay were turned over to the Russian government.
The Pentagon says it has released a total of 119 prisoners from Guantanamo Bay, and 12 others have been transferred for continued detention elsewhere.
Four have been turned over to the government of Saudi Arabia, one to the Spanish government and seven to the Russian government.
AP