On January 11, 2002, the first 20 so-called “War on Terror” detainees arrived at Guantánamo Bay detention camp. Over its history, the prison has housed nearly 800 detainees, today, 15 remain.
The site has become synonymous with abhorrent practices, including torture, indefinite detention, and other human rights violations. The U.S denied these allegations until 2009, when the first Bush administration official conceded to torture at the facility.
Almost immediately after Guantánamo opened, reports of human rights violations emerged. Even in 2023, the first UN human rights investigator allowed into the camp alleged continued “cruel, inhumane, and degrading treatment” of detainees. These violations hinder our pursuit towards the world we seek.
The Bush administration transferred more than 500 detainees from the camp, with the Obama administration bringing the number remaining down to 41. However, during the Trump administration, efforts stalled, with just one detainee transferred.
Efforts picked back up during the Biden administration, with 25 detainees transferred over four years, including 11 just last week. This bold push made by the Biden administration in the final weeks of his term will leave Guantánamo with 15 prisoners—the smallest population the detention center has seen since its opening.
Twelve of these prisoners are either serving sentences following conviction or have been charged with war crimes at Guantánamo’s military court. Three have never been charged with a crime and are behind held in so-called “law of war” detention.
The path to closing Guantanamo
With President-elect Trump strongly opposed to closing Guantánamo, the need to President Biden to shut the prison down is more urgent than ever.
Closing Guantánamo will only happen through the transfer of the final three men who have yet to be charged with a crime and finalizing plea deals with those who have.
In May 2024, after 12 years of pre-trial hearings and no trial date in sight, the U.S. reached plea agreements with three of the four defendants accused of planning the 9/11 attacks. In these plea deals, the men would have pled guilty in exchange for taking the death penalty off the table.
However, two days later, Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin attempted to revoke these plea deals. Both the Guantánamo military commissions, and military commissions appeals court upheld the plea agreements and ruled that Austin did not have the authority to rescind the deals.
The Biden administration has sought an injunction, preventing the plea agreements going into effect, while it further appeals the decision. This is a terrible mistake and threatens to not just prevent Guantánamo’s closure but to serve as a stain on President Biden’s legacy as he has sought to bring an end to endless war.
Many members of Congress and victim families continue to support these plea deals. The only way to close Guantánamo is to finalize these plea deals and to transfer prisoners not yet charged with a crime.
Advocating for the closure of this lingering injustice must remain a central part of working towards the world we seek.
We seek a world free of war and the threat of war
George Fox’s invitation to live “in the virtue of that life and power that takes away the occasion of all wars” drives our work to stop the spread of U.S military force. True security can only be achieved through peaceful means.
Keeping this military prison open and relying on so-called “law of war” detention to keep men behind bars without conviction or charge helps to keep the United States at war. Closing Guantánamo is critical achieving the world we seek, free from endless war.
We seek a society with equity and justice for all.
Friends’ unwavering belief in “the fundamental equality for all members of the human race” is central to the Quaker belief system. At FCNL, we acknowledge the crucial role government plays in safeguarding the rights of every person.
Our World We Seek statement unequivocally opposes “torture and indefinite detention in all circumstances.” The continued operation of Guantánamo Bay and the executive branch’s failure to end unlawful, arbitrary, indefinite detention undermine efforts to build a society rooted in equity and justice for all. Opposition to negotiated plea deals, slowed detainee transfers, and other obstacles to closing Guantánamo deny justice and closure to victims’ families, prolonging their suffering and impeding accountability.
President Biden can act right now to close Guantánamo. He can allow the plea deals to go forward, transfer the three remaining uncharged detainees, and bring this injustice to a final end.
If President Biden really wants to end endless war, he will close Guantánamo.
