Trump administration sends third flight of detainees to Guantanamo

PENTAGON — 

The apical U.S. homeland information authoritative got a firsthand look astatine the detention halfway astatine Guantanamo Bay, visiting the U.S. naval basal successful Cuba connected Friday, posting video of what appears to beryllium a 3rd formation of "high-threat amerciable aliens" to get astatine the facility.

Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem shared details of her sojourn connected her authoritative relationship connected the X societal media platform, promising, "Vicious pack members volition nary longer person harmless haven successful our country."

Noem did not stock details astir however galore detainees were offloaded from what appeared to beryllium a subject cargo pitchy oregon astir the crimes with which they are charged oregon of which they are suspected of having committed.

The Homeland Security Department and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement person yet to respond to requests for details.

U.S. Southern Command, which oversees operations astatine Guantanamo Bay, did not remark connected the fig of flights but told VOA Saturday that the detention installation is present lodging "over 3 twelve individuals."

SOUTHCOM besides said it "is prepared to enactment operations for holding amerciable aliens arsenic directed by the Department of Defense" and that immoderate caller arrivals "will beryllium treated safely and humanely successful accordance with planetary humanitarian standards."

Immigrants' rights groups, including the American Civil Liberties Union, connected Friday sent DHS, the State Department and the Pentagon a letter demanding accusation and contiguous entree to the individuals sent to the situation installation astatine Guantanamo Bay.

"The Constitution, and national and planetary instrumentality prohibit the authorities from utilizing Guantánamo arsenic a ineligible achromatic hole," the groups stated. "We truthful petition that the authorities supply our organizations entree to the noncitizens detained astatine Guantánamo truthful that those individuals volition person entree to ineligible counsel, and truthful advocates and the nationalist tin recognize the conditions nether which the authorities is detaining them."

Noem, successful different station connected X precocious Friday, said she was astatine Guantanamo Bay "checking retired immoderate of the operations we're lasting up to location the worst of the worst and amerciable criminals that are successful the United States of America."

"They won't beryllium determination for long," she added, portion besides thanking U.S. President Donald Trump for his hard enactment to "make America harmless again."

Noem's sojourn to Guantanamo Bay came a time aft the accomplishment of a 2nd formation of "high-threat amerciable aliens," whom she described connected societal media arsenic "murderers & vicious pack members."

In a abstracted post, earlier Friday, Noem said the detainees were each Venezuelan pack members. She said 1 detainee had confessed to murder, portion others were wanted for attempted murder, assault, weapons trafficking and impersonation.

A U.S. official, speaking to VOA connected the information of anonymity to sermon the operation, said Thursday's formation aboard a U.S. subject cargo level carried 13 "high threat" individuals.

DHS has not yet provided charging documents oregon different details regarding the crimes the detainees are accused of committing.

The archetypal 10 undocumented migrants arrived astatine the detention installation Tuesday, besides connected committee a C-17. Officials person said each the migrants are being held successful jailhouse cells nether the supervision of officers with ICE.

Homeland information officials said the 10 migrants who arrived Tuesday were members of Tren de Aragua, a Venezuelan thoroughfare pack with transnational reach. Officials did not accidental erstwhile oregon however they were archetypal taken into custody.

The White House has announced plans to designate Tren de Aragua arsenic a Foreign Terrorist Organization.

U.S. defence officials person called the detention of the high-threat migrants astatine Guantanamo Bay detention installation a impermanent measure.

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth connected Friday emphasized the military's committedness nether President Donald Trump to unafraid the U.S. confederate borderline with Mexico.

"We've seen an invasion," Hegseth told a municipality hallway gathering with Pentagon employees. "From radical each astir the satellite who I'm definite galore of them privation to question a amended life. I recognize that."

"But we besides don't cognize who millions of them are, what their intentions are, wherefore they're here," helium said. "That creates a precise existent nationalist information threat."

Since Trump's enforcement bid past month, the Pentagon has deployed hundreds of Marines to Guantanamo to grow the facilities to enactment holding operations for undocumented immigrants.

That includes preparing the detention center, known mostly for lodging subject prisoners and panic suspects, including those progressive successful the September 11, 2001, attacks and members of the Taliban.

It besides includes mounting up tents and different facilities to location non-violent migrants connected different conception of the basal to hole for arsenic galore arsenic 30,000 migrants who volition enactment determination until they tin beryllium deported to their countries of root oregon to different countries consenting to instrumentality them.

Closing Guantanamo

Democratic administrations nether Barack Obama and Joe Biden had sought to adjacent the detention camp, which was built by the George W. Bush medication successful 2002, pursuing the U.S. penetration of Afghanistan that began soon aft the 9/11 attacks of 2001.

Human rights groups person criticized the Trump administration's determination to usage Guantanamo arsenic a holding halfway for migrants, immoderate informing it would magnitude to a quality rights catastrophe.

At its tallness during the planetary warfare connected terror, the detention installation held astir 680 prisoners. As of January 6, determination were conscionable 15 detainees astatine the facility, according to the Pentagon.

Before being utilized to detain panic suspects, the U.S. naval installation besides was utilized to location migrants from Cuba and Haiti successful the aboriginal 1990s.

Carla Babb, Patsy Widakuswara, Aline Barros contributed to this story.