The US military is struggling to carry out President Donald Trump's order to hold 30,000 immigrants in Cuba's Guantanamo Bay.
According to two U.S. defense secretaries, tents set up at U.S. naval base in Guantanamo Bay are not used to accommodate migrants.
In his second week in office, Trump ordered the Pentagon and the Department of Homeland Security to prepare immigration detention facilities in Guantanamo Bay that house 30,000 migrants. “There are 30,000 beds in Guantanamo to detain the worst criminals that threaten the people of America,” Trump said.
256 illegal immigrants have passed the base since the announcement, according to the US Southern Command. Many of these immigrants were classified as “worst, worst, worst” and as threats to the US population, according to the Trump administration. Most of these immigrants have been sent back to their home countries.
Trump moves to prepare Guantanamo Bay for 30,000 “illegal criminal aliens”
President Trump ordered the Department of Defense, led by Defense Secretary Pete Hegses, to help establish immigration facilities in Guantanamo Bay. (US Army Photography Staff Sgt. ShatyraCox)
As of Wednesday, only 20 migrants were in custody at the base. Sixteen “high-threatening illegal aliens” are being held in part of a detention facility at the base, also known as Camp 6, with four immigrants being detained at the backup facility due to insufficient tents. DHS and ICE have not responded to inquiries about the criteria used to assess whether immigration is a high threat.
The US military was told to set up tents without clear guidance as to what standards are for holding immigrants, two officials said. The US military has not received specific guidelines on what tents must be certified to hold immigrants. Operations to build more tents stopped in February, just a few weeks after it began.
“In close collaboration with the Department of Homeland Security partners, the Department of Defense continues to prepare facilities for use. We are committed to ensuring that all individuals housed in these temporary facilities are treated in accordance with DHS/ICE standards.”
US military aircraft have not been used to transport immigrants since March 1st. There are currently no scheduled US military aircraft flights to Guantanamo. However, several migrants were scheduled to arrive on an ice-character aircraft on Wednesday night, the two U.S. defense secretaries said. The US Transportation Command is not asked to carry out recent flights for C-17s and C-130s ready to support immigration missions, US defense officials told Fox News.
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“Military airlift is just one of the options that DHS can use to relocate illegal aliens. DOD is ready to continue supporting them in additional fights if requested,” one U.S. defense official said in a statement in Fox News.
Fox's Laura Ingraham was interviewed exclusively with Secretary of Defense Pete Hegses and Major General Phil Ryan, commander of the operation in Guantanamo Bay on February 25th. We arrived from Fort Bliss, Texas while Ingraham reported.
Fox News' Laura Ingraham held an exclusive interview with Secretary of Defense Pete Hegses and Major General Phil Ryan. (US Army Photography Staff Sgt. ShatyraCox)
When Ingraham asked why the US military was using such a large plane for nine immigrants, Ryan explained that each immigrant has at least one ICE officer and a medical team on board. Hegseth is sure, “there were more groups.”
One reason for the slower use of military aircraft is due to its high cost. According to US Transport Command, the C-17 costs around $28,500 per hour flight. According to the government website, ice machines cost around $8,500 per hour.
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In particular, the day after Ingraham's interview on February 26th, nine immigrants were sent back to the US, and both DHS and ICE were not responding to the reason why these immigrants were sent back or the same immigrants that arrived the day before.
