President Trump to Sign Executive Order to Prepare Guantanamo Bay for Migrant Detention
President Donald Trump announced on Wednesday that he will sign an executive action ordering the federal government to prepare the US Naval base at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, to house tens of thousands of migrants. The move comes just before he signs the Laken Riley Act, a bill requiring the detention of undocumented migrants charged with certain crimes.
According to the President, Guantanamo Bay has the capacity to hold 30,000 beds, which would double the current detention capacity. Trump emphasized that many people are unaware that the base has a separate migrant-processing center, and that it has been used in the past to process Haitian migrants fleeing natural disasters.
However, a US official disputed the President’s claim, stating that the facilities at Guantanamo Bay are no longer capable of housing 30,000 migrants. The official noted that the capacity existed in the 1990s, but has since been downgraded. To accommodate 30,000 migrants, the official said that a significant amount of military staff would be required to manage the influx of people.
It is unclear what exactly the President’s executive action will entail or when it will be signed. The base is known for its detention camp for terrorism suspects, but its use for migrant detention is a new development.