Guantanamo Bay – made famous for its horrific treatment of prisoners on behalf of the U.S. against its war on terror.
Gitmo – the nickname given to this military prison, is located in southeastern Cuba, on the coast of Guantánamo Bay. The U.S. leases the property from Cuba, which subsequently gives the U.S. access to detainees that were not covered under the U.S. Constitution – meaning they could be denied protection, and the U.S. could gain information using unsavory methods.
Gitmo is famous for its ‘waterboarding‘ techniques – a form of torture not allowed in the U.S. – in an effort to extract information from its detainees – and uncover terrorist threats and to access information leading to the location and arrest of to top U.S. enemies.
The United States has transferred three Uighur Muslim detainees to Slovakia from the military prison at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, U.S. officials said Tuesday. They were the last members of the ethnic minority from China to be held at the military prison.
Yusef Abbas, 33, Saidullah Khalik, 37, and Hajiakbar Abdul Ghuper, 39, have been transferred from Guantanamo Bay, to Slovakia where they are “voluntarily resettling,” officials said Tuesday. This trio was detained for over a decade, even though they had been cleared of any connection to al-Qaeda or the Taliban.
The Slovakian government said the men it accepted had “never been suspected nor accused of terrorism,” the BBC reported.
“The United States is grateful to the government of Slovakia for this humanitarian gesture and its willingness to support U.S. efforts to close the Guantanamo Bay detention facility,” the Defense Department said in a statement. “The United States coordinated with the government of Slovakia to ensure the transfer took place in accordance with appropriate security and humane treatment measures.”
The Pentagon described the transfer as a “significant milestone.” In this milestone – is Obama’s promise to close this torture chamber – and eight other prisoners have been moved since August.
Unfortunately, 155 prisoners still remain at Guantanamo Bay.
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