Closing Guantanamo

The Shame of Guantánamo: A Close-Up View of Injustice

Anthony D. Romero | Posted 05.07.2012

Anthony D. Romero

I have now been to Guantánamo six times. Nothing I've seen has changed my view that the military commissions are unworkable. The system is set up to guarantee convictions and hand down death sentences, nothing more.

Please Call for the Closure of Guantanamo By Signing the White House Petition

Andy Worthington | Posted 03.25.2012

Andy Worthington

What happened to President Obama's bold promise to close Guantánamo?

Protests Mark Dubious Milestone

Posted 01.11.2012

WASHINGTON--Human rights groups plan protests worldwide on Wednesday to mark the 10th anniversary of the opening of the U.S. military detention ca...

Guantanamo Debate Has Gone Silent on Capitol Hill

Roll Call | Posted 05.25.2011

It was just a year ago that the question of how to close the detention center sparked a furor in Congress, with Democratic leaders demanding direction...

More "Congressional Depravity" on Guantanamo

Andy Worthington | Posted 05.25.2011

Andy Worthington

By refusing to demonstrate leadership on the issues, Obama has played into the hands of his opponents. The losers are not just the Dems, but the prisoners at GITMO, who now seem more abandoned than at any time since GITMO's first years.

House Kills Plan to Close Guantanamo

Andy Worthington | Posted 05.25.2011

Andy Worthington

The House Armed Services Committee turned down the Obama's administration's request for some $350 million intended to close Guantánamo and buy a new prison in Illinois.

Who Are the Four Prisoners Released from Guantanamo to Albania and Spain?

Andy Worthington | Posted 05.25.2011

Andy Worthington

The majority of the men held at Guantánamo had no involvement with terrorism. Of the three men rehoused in Albania, one was a businessman, living in Europe, who had traveled to Afghanistan to provide humanitarian aid.

Gitmo Detainee Now Works For Americans In Afghanistan

ABC News | KAREN RUSSO | Posted 05.25.2011

For Americans haunted by reports of Gitmo detainees being released only to resume their terror tactics, Mohammed offers the rare opposite of a one-tim...

Jason Linkins

Chertoff Warns Of 'Importing' Terrorists

HuffingtonPost.com | Jason Linkins | Posted 05.25.2011

The fear-mongering over closing the Guantanamo Bay detention facility and bringing those detainees to the United States to stand trial tends to expres...

Why Obama Cannot Close Guantanamo Bay

Patrick Robinson | Posted 05.25.2011

Patrick Robinson

There was only one rock-solid solution: leave the Guantanamo Bay prison camp exactly where it is. It's a living deterrent to enemies of the US and also the most priceless source of intelligence.

Swiss Take Two Guantanamo Uighurs, Solve Obama's Problem

Andy Worthington | Posted 05.25.2011

Andy Worthington

Obama is fortunate to have such kind allies, but he himself is the loser, the longer he refuses to tackle those who insist, in the face of overwhelming evidence, that everyone who was held at Guantánamo was a "terrorist."

Closing Guantánamo: A Deadline Missed

Anthony D. Romero | Posted 05.25.2011

Anthony D. Romero

When Guantánamo finally does close, it appears that some of its most shameful policies will continue on U.S. soil, potentially reducing the closure to a symbolic gesture.

Guantánamo Beyond Guantánamo

Jonathan Hafetz | Posted 05.25.2011

Jonathan Hafetz

The Obama administration is embracing the same malleable, elastic concept of a global "war on terror" that helped give rise to Guantánamo in the first place and that has no basis under the laws of war.

Empty Prison in Struggling Illinois Town Might Be Next Gitmo

Charles Shaw | Posted 05.25.2011

Charles Shaw

Beyond histrionics about a wave of jihad descending upon Chicago, the truth of the matter is far closer to the desire of Republicans to keep the extralegal limbo at Guantanamo going full steam.

9/11 Trials Create Nasty Legal Spat Among Defense Lawyers

Newsweek | Michael Isikoff | Posted 05.25.2011

A nasty spat has broken out among defense lawyers over an issue that is likely to be front and center in the upcoming 9/11 trial in New York: who actu...

Lawyer Blasts "Congressional Depravity" on Guantanamo

Andy Worthington | Posted 05.25.2011

Andy Worthington

Lt. Col. David Frakt said Congress is still behaving unconstitutionally with regard to the right of the Executive branch and the Judiciary to order the release of prisoners from Guantanamo.

Judge Orders Release from Guantanamo of Unwilling Yemeni Recruit

Andy Worthington | Posted 05.25.2011

Andy Worthington

The administration's reluctance to release Yemenis is based on the fear that detainees who were actually harmless in 2002 may have since actually been radicalized by their stay at Guantanamo.

Admiral: I Can Empty Guantánamo Camps In 10 Days

The Miami Herald | Carol Rosenberg | Posted 05.25.2011

GUANTANAMO BAY NAVY BASE, Cuba -- The military can comply with a White House order to empty the detention center and clear all 221 war-on-terror capti...

Terror Attempt May Hinder Plans To Close GITMO

nytimes.com | PETER BAKER and CHARLIE SAVAGE | Posted 05.25.2011

KANEOHE, Hawaii -- The attempted bombing of an American passenger plane on Christmas Day could greatly complicate President Obama's efforts to close t...

Philip Carter, Key Official In Guantanamo Closure, Resigns

The Washington Post | Peter Finn | Posted 05.25.2011

A key official in the Obama administration's effort to remake detention policy and close the military prison at Guantanamo Bay has resigned. Philip C...

75 Guantanamo Prisoners Cleared for Release; 31 Could Leave Today

Andy Worthington | Posted 05.25.2011

Andy Worthington

If the rationale for not releasing the Yemenis from Guantánamo was extended to the U.S. prison system, no prisoner would ever be released at the end of their sentence, because prison "might have radicalized" them.

Gitmo Show Trial And Tell

Danielle Celena Belton | Posted 05.25.2011

Danielle Celena Belton

What do you call a trial where the outcome is rigged from the inception? If you're a right-winger and obsessed with keeping Guantanamo Bay open, it's called a military commission.

Guantanamo Uighurs' Rights To Be Considered By Supreme Court

AP | MARK SHERMAN | Posted 05.25.2011

WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court agreed Tuesday to decide whether Guantanamo detainees who are considered no threat can be ordered released in the...

Guantanamo Envoy: U.S. Should Have Taken Cleared Prisoners; Some Should Never Have Been Held

Andy Worthington | Posted 05.25.2011

Andy Worthington

To my mind, President Obama missed a golden opportunity to bring 17 Uighur prisoners to the U.S. in his early days in office.

Obama Still On Track To Close Gitmo By January

AP | LARA JAKES | Posted 05.25.2011

WASHINGTON — The Pentagon's top lawyer on Thursday said the Obama administration remains committed to closing the Guantanamo Bay prison by early...