Retired Flag and General Officers, National Security Experts Advise Against Closure of Gitmo, Transfer of Detainees to the US

(Washington, D.C.): The Coalition for Security, Liberty and the Law – consisting of dozens of former generals, admirals, and security policy professionals – has sent a letter to President Barack Obama urging, as a matter of national security, that detainees held at Guantanamo Bay (“Gitmo”) not be transferred to the United States, and that Gitmo be kept open until a more permanent and secure alternative is found.

• The prisons and nearby civilian populations would be turned into high-probability terrorist targets;
• Prison staff would be exposed to unique threats and legal liabilities;
• High-value prisoners would contribute to the radicalization of prison populations – a concern previously raised by FBI Director Robert Mueller;
• Once inside the U.S. prison system, detainees would sue for the removal of special restrictions;
• The U.S. government would be forced to choose between revealing classified evidence to secure a conviction in court and setting detainees free;
• According to the Department of Defense, many detainees released from Gitmo have returned to committing terrorism against the United States.

Among the signatories of the letter are dozens of retired flag officers who previously served in the United States Army, Navy, Air Force, and Marine Corps, as well as R. James Woolsey, former Director of Central Intelligence, Bradford A. Berenson, former Associate Counsel to the President, and Andrew C. McCarthy, former Chief Assistant United States Attorney.

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