The News
The U.S. Coast Guard has concluded its antiterrorism patrols around Guantánamo Bay, Cuba, discontinuing a special security operation that was hastily implemented after the Sept. 11 attacks.
For 21 years, crews in special fast boats, equipped with M2 heavy machine guns, conducted patrols along the coast near the prison complex as part of the detention operations on the base. Additionally, members of the Coast Guard provided courtroom security at military commission hearings and manned sandbagged seaside bunkers referred to as “battle positions” by the military.
This recent development marks another reduction in forces assigned to the detention operation. Between 2002 and 2008, the George W. Bush administration held 780 detainees at Guantánamo Bay, but that number has now dwindled to 30 prisoners under the Biden administration.
Prior to this, the military had already downsized the prison staff to approximately 1,000 troops and civilians with the closure of Camp 7, where high-value detainees were held, and the withdrawal of a public affairs unit.
Why It Matters:
The mission had cost tens of millions of dollars each year.
The withdrawal of the Coast Guard unit is expected to result in cost savings for the expensive endeavor of the war against terrorism. In 2019, it cost over $13 million per prisoner annually to operate.
According to a report to Congress by the Department of Homeland Security, over $50 million was spent in 2021 to deploy and maintain 180 Coast Guard members at Guantánamo Bay.
This decision also suggests that concerns about attacks on the base from the sea by Al Qaeda or other enemies have diminished.
Background: The deployment was a response to post-9/11 fears.
In January 2002, the Defense Department deployed the first Coast Guard port security unit to Guantánamo even before the arrival of the first detainees.
Thirty-nine U.S.-based Coast Guard or Coast Guard Reserve security units subsequently served in the detention operation, and it was the same Virginia unit that commenced and concluded the military mission this week.
With gunners equipped with .50 caliber machine guns, these special teams maintained a consistent security presence on the bay as detainees were transported from the base airstrip to the prison.
Over the years, commanders of the detention operation confirmed that no enemy forces were ever encountered, although the units occasionally intercepted individuals attempting to reach the base as migrants.
What’s Next:
Existing base forces will assume their duties.
The Coast Guard stated in a news release that the antiterrorism force protection duties would now be handled by the harbor patrol and Marine security forces on the base. These units are not directly involved in the detention operation but instead report to the Navy base commander.
This announcement from the Coast Guard coincided with the resumption of hearings at Guantánamo for a death penalty case involving a Saudi prisoner accused of orchestrating Al Qaeda’s suicide bombing of the U.S.S. Cole warship on Oct. 12, 2000, resulting in the death of seventeen sailors.
This month, the military will appoint its 22nd commander of the Guantánamo detention mission. An Army colonel will assume command following two decades of leadership by generals or admirals holding one- and two-star ranks.
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