Washington - Arab Today
President-elect Donald Trump called for the end of all detainee releases from the military prison at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, saying in a tweet that those who remain are "extremely dangerous people" who "should not be allowed back onto the battlefield".
The statement comes as the Obama administration prepares to release another 19 detainees from the facility before the president leaves office.
White House press secretary Josh Earnest, and other US officials said Trump’s statement won’t change the current administration’s plans, and the government pledged to move ahead with the transfer of inmates out of the military prison, rejecting Trump's demand for a freeze.
There are 59 prisoners remaining at the controversial detention center, only a handful of whom have started moving through the military tribunals, including the alleged plotters of the 9/11 attacks.
Trump has vowed to "load [Guantanamo] up with some bad dudes" once he is in the White House. The White House pointedly responded when asked if Trump's position would impact Obama's thinking. "No, it will not," Earnest said. "He will have an opportunity to implement the policy that he believes is most effective when he takes office on January 20," he added.
Source: QNA