WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Dozens of U.S. House of Representatives Democrats, including the leaders of the Armed Services, Foreign Affairs and Intelligence Committees, called on President Joe Biden on Thursday to immediately close the military prison at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. Opened under Republican President George W. Bush after the Sept. 11 attacks, the prison’s population peaked at about 800 inmates. Democratic President Barack Obama whittled down the number, but his effort to close the prison was stymied by opposition in Congress from some of his fellow Democrats as well as Republicans. Congress passed laws barring transfers of Guantanamo inmates to prisons on the U.S. mainland. Democrats now control Congress, but their majorities are so slim that changing the laws would be difficult.

Source: MetroXpress August 05, 2021 18:56 UTC