Ex-US military officials seek Gitmo’s closure

Thursday, October 01, 2009
WASHINGTON: Top former US military officials are lobbying US President Barack Obama to advance plans to close the controversial military prison at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. Working with the human rights group Human Rights First, more than a dozen former US military officials are meeting this week top Obama officials including Attorney-General Holder, Pentagon officials and lawmakers to press them to quickly close the Guantanamo prison, which has been the target of international condemnation.

The officials on Tuesday sought to counter arguments made by critics of the closure plan.

“It’s the use of fear that I find so disturbing,” retired Army General David Maddox told Reuters, arguing no terrorism suspects or convicts have escaped from jail and that the detainees would not be released into the United States after they served their sentences.

Obama pledged to close the facility by Jan 22, 2010, but has run into political, legal and diplomatic obstacles which could delay the closure. That has allowed a fierce debate to fill the breach as the administration tries to tackle those issues.

The administration is near selecting a place inside the United States to move the terrorism suspects from Guantanamo, some of whom will face charges in military tribunals or US criminal courts, but that has sparked several concerns.

Some congressional Republicans question whether US prisons can accommodate terrorism suspects and warn that their presence in prisons in the United States could cause attacks.