The Biden administration was on the verge of transferring 11 detainees from Guantanamo Bay to a country in the Middle East in October 2023 but halted the move due to concerns about political optics following an attack by Hamas on Israel. Seven months later, there is still no new date set for the transfer, and the detainees remain at Guantanamo without clarity on when or if they will be relocated. Administration officials are frustrated by the holdup, believing that election-year politics are overshadowing Biden’s goal of reducing the Guantanamo population and closing the facility. They fear that as the presidential election approaches, the likelihood of the transfer decreases, and the prolonged detention of the 11 men without a clear plan could become a human rights issue.
The 11 detainees are either citizens of Yemen or have ties to the country and were slated to be resettled in Oman. However, the deal for their transfer is still under discussion with Oman, including specific timing and conditions, but politics have played a role in delaying the process. A senior administration official indicated that Oman has at times not wanted the transfer to proceed since October, leading to frustrations among officials working to make the transfer happen. While some logistics remain to be finalized, the transfer is still being actively pursued, with hopes that it could occur this year.
Both Democrats and Republicans have objected to moving detainees out of Guantanamo, creating a political point of contention across multiple administrations. The top Democrats on the House and Senate intelligence committees, along with GOP counterparts, issued a joint statement urging the Biden administration not to allow intelligence community funds to facilitate any transfers of Guantanamo detainees. Biden, like Obama before him, has been working to close the facility, but detainee transfers came to a near standstill during Trump’s presidency. Closing Guantanamo remains a priority for Biden administration officials, who fear that if the 11 detainees are not resettled this year and Trump is re-elected, they may remain at the facility for several more years.
The 11 detainees who were scheduled to be transferred in October had been cleared for release or transfer by the U.S. years earlier. With Yemen embroiled in a long-standing civil war, transferring the detainees there was not considered viable. Even though the fighting between the Houthis and Yemen’s government, backed by Saudi Arabia, had subsided in 2023, the country remains unstable, facing humanitarian crises and terrorist threats from an Al Qaeda affiliate. The conflict between Israel and Hamas, along with attacks by Houthi rebels in Yemen, has further complicated the situation, making it politically risky to transfer detainees out of Guantanamo.
Efforts to negotiate the terms of the detainees’ transfer to Oman had been ongoing for months, with measures in place to ensure they would not pose a security threat and discussing any potential compensation they might receive. The decision to halt the transfer was not due to issues between the U.S. and Oman but rather concerns raised by members of Congress, particularly Democrats close to the president, about the timing of the move. The administration had already informed Congress of the planned transfer, as required by law, at least 30 days in advance. If the transfer had proceeded, it would have brought the Guantanamo population to below 20 for the first time since the facility opened in 2002, marking a significant step toward closing the prison.
The ongoing delays in transferring the detainees highlight the challenges facing the Biden administration in fulfilling its goal of closing Guantanamo. With political considerations complicating the process and concerns about potential future scenarios if the detainees are not resettled, the situation remains uncertain. The administration’s efforts to navigate the intricate negotiations with Oman and address the various security and political factors involved underscore the complexities involved in managing the Guantanamo detention facility. Ultimately, the fate of the 11 detainees and the closure of Guantanamo remain unresolved, with the specter of political and humanitarian concerns looming large.
