Trump orders establishment of 30,000-person migrant facility at Guantanamo
'Some of them are so bad we don't even trust the countries to hold them, because we don't want them coming back,' says president
WASHINGTON
US President Donald Trump said Wednesday that he is directing the Pentagon and the Department of Homeland Security to establish a 30,000-person detention facility at Guantanamo Bay in Cuba for undocumented migrants.
"Most people don't even know we have 30,000 beds in Guantanamo to detain the worst criminal illegal aliens threatening the American people. Some of them are so bad we don't even trust the countries to hold them, because we don't want them coming back," Trump said in remarks delivered from the White House.
"So we're going to send them out to Guantanamo. This will double our capacity immediately. Right? And tough. That's a tough place to get out of," he added.
A copy of the presidential memorandum says Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem have been directed to "expand the Migrant Operations Center at Naval Station Guantanamo Bay to full capacity to provide additional detention space for high-priority criminal aliens unlawfully present in the United States."
"This memorandum is issued in order to halt the border invasion, dismantle criminal cartels, and restore national sovereignty," it adds.
Guantanamo is home to an infamous military facility where prisoners have been held, and often subject to torture, for years in the wake of the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks on the US homeland.
The Pentagon announced earlier this month, under the former administration of Joe Biden, the transfer of 11 detainees to the Gulf nation of Oman, leaving just 15 individuals at the facility.
Of those remaining, three were eligible for transfer and three others are eligible to appear before a review board. Seven are in the midst of military trial proceedings, and two have been convicted and sentenced.
Biden had promised to shutter the scandal-plagued military prison, but, like President Barack Obama before him, failed to do so during his term.
Trump border czar Tom Homan told reporters that Immigration and Customs Enforcement would manage the migrant facility. Homan said they could fly "the worst of the worst, the significant public safety threats" there.
"That is something that the White House is working on, to use resources that we currently have there at Guantanamo Bay. So we'll go through the process. The worst of the worst is where that can be utilized. So that potential is there. We know we need the infrastructure,” said Noem.
*Diyar Guldogan contributed to this story
