Gates orders study into ways to close down notorious prison for terrorists
Guantanamo detainees participate in the early morning Islamic prayer, as a US miltary guard sits nearby. Allegations of prisoner abuse in the facility have led to President-elect Obama vowing to shut it down. -- PHOTO: ASSOCIATED PRESS
WASHINGTON: US Defence Secretary Robert Gates has ordered aides to draw up plans for closing the 'war on terror' prison at Guantanamo in Cuba, a declared priority for President-elect Barack Obama, a defence official has said.
He wanted to be ready in case Mr Obama decides to take action on Guantanamo soon after assuming office next month, said Mr Geoff Morrell, the Pentagon press secretary.
'High-value' detainees
JEMAAH Islamiah leader Hambali, also known as Riduan Isamuddin, figures among the 'high value' detainees at Guantanamo Bay military prison.
'He has asked his team for a proposal on how to shut it down, what will be required specifically to close it and move the detainees from that facility, and at the same time protect the American people from dangerous terrorists,' he said.
'The request has been made, his team is working on it so he can be prepared to assist the President-elect should he wish to address this very early in his tenure.'
Mr Obama has pledged to close the prison which was opened in early 2002 in south-eastern Cuba and has since come to symbolise aggressive detention practices that opened the United States to allegations of torture.
The President-elect said in the current issue of Time magazine that he hoped to have the facility shut during the first two years of his term.
Prisoners captured in Afghanistan and Pakistan during and after the US-led overthrow of the Taleban regime in Afghanistan were flown to Guantanamo in orange jumpsuits and hoods, and held initially in primitive conditions.
Since then, nearly 800 detainees from around the Muslim world and Europe have done time in the prison, which grew over time into a state-of-the-art maximum security complex.
The facility currently holds about 250 detainees, including Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, accused of masterminding the Sept 11, 2001 attacks in the US.
But allegations of abuses, the use of harsh interrogation practices and indefinite detentions of 'enemy combatants' without charges made it a symbol to many around the world of US excesses in the 'war on terror'.
'I think we can provide alternatives to it,' Mr Gates said in an interview that aired late on Wednesday on PBS television.
'I would like to see it closed. And I think it will be a high priority for the new administration.'
Mr Gates was appointed to his post by outgoing President George W. Bush but has agreed to stay on under Mr Obama.
Defence officials said the task of closing Guantanamo is likely to be a lengthy, complex process that would involve all three branches of the government.
'You look at this sort of thing early because that's when you have momentum for bringing about change. With a new administration coming in, you've got people who are willing to do what's necessary,' said one defence official.
Officials said members of the Office of the Secretary of Defence and the Joint Chiefs of Staff will provide Mr Obama with a set of options for tackling the complex issues raised by Guantanamo.
It was not clear whether the Pentagon would recommend a specific course of action to the new President.
The Obama administration would need to decide where to hold current detainees, particularly about 110 prisoners who the Pentagon believes are too dangerous to be released from US custody. Options might include military installations on US soil and civilian federal prisons.
The US would also need to decide what kind of court system should handle trials for roughly 80 detainees. There are now charges against 20 of them.
Addressing these issues could require input from a number of other government entities including the Justice Department, judicial officers and Congress, officials said. In fact, Mr Gates has said that Congress should pass legislation to protect the American public by preventing any former Guantanamo detainee from living in the US.
The Guantanamo tribunals are scheduled to reconvene on Jan 19 for pre-trial hearings for Canadian captive Omar Khadr, who is set to stand trial the following week on charges of murdering a US soldier with a grenade in Afghanistan.
