Obama Administration Efforts to Close the Guantanamo Bay Detention Facility
As the President has made clear since his first day in office, closing the Guantanamo Bay
detention facility is fundamentally consistent with the national security and foreign policy
interests of the United States as well as with our values as Americans. Its continued operation
undermines our standing in the world and weakens our national security by emboldening violent
extremists, damaging our relations with key allies and partners, and draining our nation’s
resources. Consistent with the United States’ commitment to the rule of law and universal
human rights, this Administration has spared no effort to safely and responsibly close the
detention facility at Guantanamo and to bring this chapter of our history to an end.
Of the nearly 800 detainees at one time held at Guantanamo Bay, more than 90 percent have
been transferred, including more than 500 detainees transferred by the prior Administration and
196 detainees transferred by this Administration. As of January 19, 2017, 41 detainees remain at
Guantanamo Bay.
In its efforts to safely and responsibly close the Guantanamo Bay detention facility, this
Administration has pursued four lines of effort simultaneously: (1) identifying and effectuating
transfer opportunities for detainees designated for transfer; (2) continuing to periodically review
those detainees who are not currently designated for transfer or who are not currently facing
military commission charges to ensure detention is only continued when necessary; (3)
continuing with ongoing military commissions prosecutions and, for those detainees who remain
designated for continued law of war detention, identifying individualized dispositions where
available, including transfer to third countries – including for foreign prosecution; and (4) urging
Congress to lift the ban on transfers to the United States to allow for the safe relocation of the
limited number of detainees who are not currently approved for transfer or for whom another
disposition has not yet been identified to an appropriate site in the United States, while
continuing to identify other appropriate and lawful dispositions. In addition, all detainees at
Guantanamo continue to be able to pursue of the writ of habeas corpus.
(1) Securely Transferring Detainees Designated for Transfer by the President’s National
Security Team
This Administration has developed and successfully implemented a transfer process to ensure
that detainees continue to be held only when necessary and appropriate, that detainees are
transferred from Guantanamo only after a rigorous interagency review process evaluates the
specific circumstances of the transfer and determines that any potential threat posed by the
detainee is mitigated, including through tailored security assurances, and that such transfers are
consistent with our humane treatment policy. This Administration conducted 196 such transfers,
each of which occurred only after the United States Government engaged in detailed, specific
conversations with the receiving country about the potential threat a detainee may pose after
transfer, and the measures the receiving country will take in order to sufficiently mitigate that
threat and to ensure humane treatment. Reflecting the strong international support for
Guantanamo closure efforts, the Administration successfully repatriated 52 detainees to 13
countries, resettled 144 detainees who could not be repatriated in 30 different countries,
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 including two detainees transferred for prosecution in a third country. In addition, one detainee
was successfully prosecuted in an Article III court in the United States and is currently serving a
life sentence following a conviction for conspiracy to destroy government buildings and
property.
As of January 19, 2017, of the 41 detainees who remain at Guantanamo, 5 have been determined
to be eligible for transfer by relevant national security departments and agencies (Departments of
Defense, State, Justice, and Homeland Security, the Office of the Chairman Joint Chiefs of Staff,
and the Office of the Director of National Intelligence) through the interagency 2009 Executive
Order (E.O.) 13492 Task Force or the ongoing E.O. 13567 Periodic Review Board process. The
remainder are either subject to ongoing military commission proceedings, serving a sentence
handed down by the military commissions, or have been determined by the President’s national
security team to pose a risk at this time such that they should continue to be held under the laws
of war. A decision to designate a detainee for transfer reflects the best judgment of U.S.
Government experts, including counterterrorism, intelligence, diplomatic, and law enforcement
professionals, that, to the extent a detainee poses a continuing threat to the United States, the
threat could be sufficiently mitigated—and the national interest would be served—if the detainee
were transferred to another country subject to appropriate security measures.
Under the framework developed by this Administration, the United States has worked
extensively with receiving governments to ensure that appropriate security measures are in place
to mitigate the risk that the transferred individual will engage or reengage in any terrorist or other
hostile activity that threatens the United States or U.S. persons or interests. In particular, the
Administration has sought assurances from receiving governments that they will take certain
security measures that, in the United States Government’s experience, have proven to be
effective in mitigating the threat that may be posed by former detainees. The specific measures
put in place vary depending on a range of factors, including the specific threat a detainee may
pose, the geographic location of the receiving country, the receiving country’s domestic laws, the
receiving country's capabilities and resources, and, where applicable, the receiving country’s
international legal obligations. Importantly, the Administration only transferred a detainee after
the Secretary of Defense determined that the transfer was in the national security interest of the
United States, the threat posed by the detainee will be substantially mitigated, and the transfer is
consistent with our humane treatment policy, as required by law. In each case, the specific
security assurances negotiated take into account the individual facts and circumstances of the
transfer, including the detainee’s specific threat profile at the time of transfer, as well as the
capabilities and domestic legal authorities of the receiving government.
The rigorous interagency review process put in place by this Administration has resulted in a
measured, responsible, and thoughtful approach to transfers that places the safety of Americans
paramount. For detainees transferred since 2009, less than six percent of former detainees have
been confirmed by the Intelligence Community of engaging or reengaging in terrorist activity,
and less than seven percent of former detainees are suspected of reengaging in such activity.
Any potential incidence of reengagement is taken very seriously and relevant agencies have
worked in close coordination through military, intelligence, law enforcement, and diplomatic
channels to mitigate any threat posed by such activities, including taking follow-on action when
necessary.

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 (2) Continued Review of Detainees by the Periodic Review Board
Consistent with our values and our international obligations, it is imperative to ensure that law of
war detention continues only when necessary and lawful. The Periodic Review Board (PRB) is
an interagency body with career professional representatives from the Department of Defense,
the Department of Homeland Security, the Department of Justice, the Department of State, the
Office of the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and the Office of the Director of National
Intelligence. The process outlined in E.O. 13567 charges the PRB with examining whether,
given current intelligence and other information, the continued detention of the detainee remains
necessary to protect against a continuing significant threat to the security of the United States.
In 2016, the Administration concluded the initial 64 PRB reviews, with 38 detainees approved
for transfer by the PRB. There are 26 detainees not currently approved for transfer or charged or
convicted by military commission. Under the process established by Executive Order 13567,
these detainees will continue to receive PRB file reviews every six months and a full review
every three years or when the PRB determines it is warranted based on the file reviews.
Notwithstanding the PRB’s continuing review, each of these detainees continues to be
considered for an individualized disposition, as discussed below.
(3) Continuing Military Commissions and Pursing Disposition Options for Remaining
Detainees
The most effective option for dealing with individuals detained outside military theaters
continues to be our strong, proven federal courts. Our federal district courts have an established
track record of safely and securely conducting high-profile national security trials. Indeed, the
record of Article III courts in terrorism cases – providing fair, thorough, and speedy disposition
of these cases – is outstanding. Recent history proves that our courts system is capable of
dispensing justice even to some of the most hardened terrorists in the highest-profile cases.
Despite significant, ongoing setbacks and the complexity of addressing novel issues in the
military commissions setting, military commissions convened to address offenses recognized by
the international laws of war continue to be an option for individuals who remain detained at
Guantanamo. Currently, ten detainees have ongoing military commission proceedings. One has
been sentenced pursuant to a military commission proceeding, which is the subject of continuing
judicial review, and two are awaiting sentencing. We can expect lengthy appeals once the active
cases go to trial and reach verdicts. All of this is expected to cost at least $91 million per year
and litigation is expected to continue for several years.
Of the 26 detainees who currently are not designated for transfer and are not in some stage of the
military commissions process, 16 were initially referred by the Guantanamo Review Task Force
for prosecution (either before a military commission or in an Article III court).
Further, detainees not otherwise designated for transfer or subject to prosecution or conviction by
military commissions or Article III courts have continued to be considered on a case-by-case
basis for transfer to a foreign country, including for foreign prosecution. Any such transfer
would be undertaken consistent with applicable domestic and international law and our humane
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 treatment policy and would be carried out only where it was assessed that the conditions under
which the detainee would be transferred would substantially mitigate the risk to the United States
or U.S. persons or interests.
(4) Relocation of a Limited Detainee Population to the United States
For the limited number of detainees who are not designated for transfer and for whom another
disposition has not yet been identified, the Administration has sought to work with Congress to
relocate them from the Guantanamo Bay detention facility to a secure detention facility in the
United States, while continuing to identify other appropriate and lawful dispositions. Based on
past reviews and a 2015 survey of potential detention locations in the United States, the
Department of Defense has determined that, with modifications, a variety of Department of
Defense, Bureau of Prisons, and state prison facilities could safely, securely, and humanely
house a limited number of Guantanamo detainees for the purpose of military commissions and
continued law of war detention, as necessary and subject to continued periodic review.
Transferring the small number of remaining detainees to a U.S. facility and closing the detention
facility at Guantanamo would result in substantial cost savings, enabling the Department of
Defense to put these resources towards meeting the challenges the United States faces around the
world. The Fiscal Year 2015 cost to operate the Guantanamo Bay detention mission was
approximately $445 million. In addition to annual operating costs, maintaining the facility
would require approximately $200 million in needed military construction, and $25 million for
related furnishing. Based on site surveys and an in-depth review of every major cost center
associated with detention operations, the Department of Defense assessed that this plan,
compared to keeping Guantanamo open, would lower recurring costs by up to $85 million a year.
Over 10 years, it would generate savings of more than $300 million. Over 20 years, the savings
would be up to $1.7 billion and would allow us to ensure our security, uphold our highest values
around the world, and save American taxpayers a lot of money at the same time.
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As the President has said, spending hundreds of millions of dollars to keep 41 men in an isolated
detention facility in Cuba, year after year, is not consistent with our values or our interests as a
Nation. It undermines our standing in the world and it is viewed as a stain on our longstanding
record of upholding the highest standards, of adhering to the rule of law. It is long past time to
close this chapter in our history.

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