Trump Furious After Guantánamo Bay Emptied

The Trump administration’s efforts to detain migrants at Guantánamo Bay, Cuba, encountered another setback this week as all 40 individuals previously held there were transported back to the United States. At this time, no additional deportation flights to Guantánamo are planned.

A Defense Department official confirmed Thursday that there are now “zero” migrants being held at the naval base. This includes 23 individuals considered “high threat,” who had been housed at the detention facility, as well as 17 others who were held at the migrant operations center on the base.

The official did not disclose where the men were relocated, but multiple reports indicate that they were flown back to the U.S. on a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) aircraft and placed in one or more of ICE’s detention centers in Louisiana. When asked for further details, ICE and the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) declined to comment.

This marks the second time the administration has swiftly cleared the facility. On February 20, officials deported 177 Venezuelan migrants who had been flown in from the United States and later repatriated to their home country. Additionally, two weeks ago, another group of 48 migrants was transferred from Guantánamo to Louisiana, according to The Washington Post.

It remains uncertain whether the U.S. government will continue using Guantánamo for migrant detention. The policy, first announced by President Trump in January, has involved costly military flights to the naval base in Cuba, raising questions about its long-term viability.