In his State of the Union address to a joint session of Congress, President Trump announced that he had signed an executive order on Tuesday reversing President Obama’s order to close the prison.
There haven’t been any new prisoners added to the prison in a decade, but there were still 41 prisoners still being detained when Obama left office, including five who are scheduled for release but have yet to be.
The move is concerning to foreign allies who feel it will either restrict or prevent them from partnering with the United States in their effort to combat terrorism. Critics also point out that the presence and continued use of the prison at Guantanamo Bay helps terrorists to recruit.
NPR’s David Welna, speaking with Morning Edition, said, “It looks like many of the remaining prisoners – many of whom have been stuck there for more than a dozen years and have never been charged with any crime, much less tried, are likely stuck there for more years to come.”
