Guantanamo Bay

The first U.S. military flight deporting migrants to Guantanamo Bay landed in Cuba on February 6, 2025.

• The C-17 military plane took off from El Paso, Texas, carrying migrants to the high-security facility.
• Guantanamo Bayis located in the Caribbean Sea, southeast of Havana, Cuba.
• The Platt Amendment (1903)granted the U.S. a perpetual lease to the bay for use as a naval base.
• The Guantanamo Bay Naval Base remains operational under U.S. control.
• The Guantanamo Bay detention camp was established in January 2002 by President George W. Bush.
• It was created to hold terrorism suspects and “illegal enemy combatants” during the Global War on Terrorism after 9/11 attacks.