Trump to prepare Guantanamo facility for 30,000 migrants

US President Donald Trump announced on January 29 that he would direct the Pentagon and the Department of Homeland Security to prepare a migrant detention facility at Guantanamo Bay capable of housing up to 30,000 migrants.

The Guantanamo Bay naval base in Cuba already has a migrant facility, separate from the high-security prison for foreign terrorism suspects.

This facility has been used intermittently for decades to detain migrants, including Haitians and Cubans intercepted at sea.

"Today I'm also signing an executive order to instruct the Departments of Defense and Homeland Security to begin preparing the 30,000-person migrant facility at Guantanamo Bay," Trump said at the White House, Caliber.Az reports, citing international media.

He explained that the facility would be used to "detain the worst criminal illegal aliens threatening the American people."

The President continued, “Some of them are so bad we don’t even trust the countries to hold them because we don’t want them coming back, so we’re going to send them out to Guantanamo. This will double our capacity immediately, right? And, tough.”

Later, Trump signed a memorandum that did not specify the number of migrants but called for "additional detention space" at the expanded facility. Homan emphasized that the centre would be designated for the "worst of the worst."

Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, when asked about the funding for the facility, stated that the administration was working with Congress on reconciliation and appropriations.

The detention facility at Guantanamo Bay was established in 2002 by then-US President George W. Bush to hold foreign militant suspects after the September 11, 2001, attacks. There are currently 15 detainees remaining in the facility. Presidents Barack Obama and Joe Biden both aimed to close the Guantanamo prison but were only able to reduce the inmate population. Trump has repeatedly vowed to keep the prison open.

The Guantanamo facility has been criticized by human rights organizations for indefinite detention and harsh interrogation methods, which many consider to be torture. The migrant detention area at Guantanamo Bay would be separate from the existing prison.

Cuban President Miguel Diaz-Canel condemned Trump's plan, calling it "an act of brutality." Pro-refugee groups have also called for the closure of the Guantanamo migrant facility, urging Congress to investigate alleged abuses at the site. A 2024 report by the International Refugee Assistance Project highlighted concerns such as unsanitary conditions, mixed housing of families with young children and single adults, lack of access to confidential phone calls, and no educational services for children.

In related news, the US military announced that it would allow ICE to detain migrants at Buckley Space Force Base in Colorado. This decision adds to ongoing US military deportation flights and the deployment of over 1,600 active-duty troops to the US-Mexico border following Trump's emergency immigration declaration last week.

By Tamilla Hasanova