RIYADH:  The Saudi authorities released the names on Sunday of two nationals who committed suicide at the US detention centre in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, and said it had set in motion procedures to repatriate the bodies.

The official SPA news agency identified the dead as Maniy bin Shaman al-Otaibi and Yasser Talal al-Zahrani.

"After we were informed, we immediately made all the calls and started the official procedures to repatriate their bodies," an interior ministry spokesman told the news agency.

Saudi nationals make up almost 25 per cent of the estimated 400 security suspects held in Guantanamo.