Holder: GITMO On Track To Close, Detainees Could Transfer To Illinois

By Benny Martinez - University of New Mexico/Talk Radio News Service

Attorney General Eric Holder, Jr. told the Senate Judiciary Committee Wednesday that a new facility must be opened in order to hold detainees currently occupying the Guantánamo Bay detention facility before the Obama administration can shut it down.

“It is still the intention of this administration to close the facility at Guantánamo,” Holder said. “It serves as a recruiting tool for those who have sworn to harm this nation [and] we will close GITMO as quickly as we can, as soon as we can.”

Holder said that the Department of Justice is continuing to eye a $145 million maximum security prison that remains unopened in Thomson, Illinois as a possible replacement. The prospective site currently belongs to the Illinois Department of Corrections.

The Illinois maximum security facility will hold the 240 detainees currently held in Cuba, including Khalid Sheikh Mohammed and his co-defendants in the 9/11 terror trial if found guilty.

Holder touched upon Mohammed's trial, which was initially proposed to be held in a New York civilian court but is now under consideration again after New York officials raised questions concerning security issues.

“The administration is in the process of reviewing the decision as to where Khalid Sheikh Mohammed and his co-defendants should actually be tried,” Holder said. “New York is not off the table, though we have to take into consideration the concerns that have been raised by officials and the community.”

Holder told the committee that he expects a decision regarding the trial to be made in the coming weeks.

“As I’ve said from the outset, this is a close call. It should be clear to everyone by now that there are many legal, national security and practical factors to be considered here. As a consequence, there are many perspectives on what the most appropriate and effective forum is.”

State Department Spokesman Says Progress Has Been Made Toward Closing Gitmo

By Leah Valencia, University of New Mexico/Talk Radio News Service

State department spokesman Phillip Crowley said Friday that International efforts to relocate detainees from the Guantanamo Bay detention facility is progressing.

“We remain committed to close Guantanamo,” Crowley said in a briefing at the Foreign Press Center. “We‘re gratified at the cooperation and support that we have received from a variety of countries over the last couple months.”

Crowley did not specify how many detainees have been moved, but said the State Department is working to find a place for all detainees that are cleared to be removed.

“There are still significant blocks of detainees that we are still trying to determine what we might be able to do with them,” Crowley said.

Closing the Guantanamo Bay detention facility has been a priority of the Obama administration since the president took office in January, but Obama has been criticized by progressive Americans for working too slowly to move the prisoners.

“Obviously, it has become more of a challenge than might have been anticipated, but clearly we are committed to the closing of Guantanamo as soon as we can.”

Crowley also commented on last week's Fort Hood shooting, saying that, though the suspected shooter has been identified as a Muslim man, the military will not start to discriminate based on religion, and he does not expect it to affect enlistment.

“I certainly do not think that the fact that the suspect is of a particular faith should in any way effect the willingness of American citizens, regardless of their ethic background or faith, to want to serve in the United States military,” Crowley said.

Uyghur Gitmo Detainees Described As "Peaceful Men"

A group of 17 Uyghur men are being held at Guantanamo Bay for no reason according to the defense attorney for six of the men.

Uyghurs (Wee-gurs) are a group of Turkic people who live in the areas of Central Asia that is commonly known as East Turkestan. The men were picked up during the Afghan war by bounty hunters and handed over to the U.S. They believe they have been portrayed as dangerous terrorists, however, they have been working to change their image to that of peaceful, innocent men. They have been held at Guantanamo for 6 years.

“What the American public needs to understand about the Uyghurs at Guantanamo is that they have been exonerated by the military,” said Susan Baker Manning, a lawyer for six of the men, at a press conference Tuesday in Washington, D.C., “They were exonerated by the Bush administration and they have been exonerated by the courts. The courts have found that there is no evidence of a link to terrorism. The courts have found that there is no evidence that they are dangerous in any way, shape or form. We cannot in good faith and we cannot Constitutionally continue to imprison these innocent men at Guantanamo," Manning said.

According to Manning, a military translator confused the word “protest” in Uyghur for “fight.” She said the mistranslation may be the reason the men have been held at Guantanamo.

Manning added that she believes the administration is dedicated to the release of these men and it has to happen as soon as possible. There is currently a Supreme Court petition pending for a review of the men’s cases.

Levin: Detainees Could Be Allowed In US

Senator Carl Levin (D-Mich.) discusses how he believes that the decision about detainees coming into the United States should be left up to local governments, and the federal government should not institute a national ban. (0:36)

Obama Orders Detention Facility at Guantanamo Closed

Moving to make good on one of his key campaign pledges, President Obama this morning signed a series of executive orders to close the detention facility at the U.S. Navy base at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.

The orders, signed at a West Wing ceremony, specify the closure should occur within 12 months. Obama is also ending what the new administration believes are harsh interrogation techniques used previously. Obama has said the United States will fight terrorism "in a manner consistent with our values and ideals."

The timetable means the clock is ticking on figuring out just what to do with the 245 detainees being held at Gitmo. Among them: Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, the alleged mastermind of the September 11, 2001 attacks.

A senior administration official says detainees will eventually be classified into various groups, ranging from those who could be released, to those who cannot. The official said that some detainees could still be "in detention for years," but added "but not without due process."

Among the options at the administration's disposal for detainees: repatriation to their home country or a willing third country, civil trials in the U.S., or a special civil or military process. The official told reporters that prisoners would be released or transferred on a rolling basis, based on how their individual cases are determined.

The administration is now in contact with foreign governments to take detainees who may be released at a future date. The official said detainees would not be sent to countries with a reputation for torturing prisoners; he did not say what countries were under consideration. No countries have stepped forward and volunteered to accept anyone to date; the official said "We hope some will help us."

Future interrogations of detainees will be done within the parameters of the Geneva Conventions, the official said, and will use only techniques listed in the Army Field Manual - a reference to waterboarding, which will be discontinued.

The administration's review process for detainees will be overseen by a high level committee comprised of the Attorney General, the Secretaries of Defense, State, Homeland Security, the Director of National Intelligence and the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.