The Trump Administration Is Imprisoning Somali Immigrants in Gitmo
“The worst place ever I’ve been in my life.” That’s how Sakariye Abdi Mohamed described the detention center at Guantanamo Bay, where he and a handful of other Somali immigrants are being held by Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Late last month, ICE put 12 Somali men on a plane and told them they were being […]
President Donald Trump's administration is imprisoning Somali immigrants at the infamous Guantanamo Bay detention center, according to recent reports. The 12 Somali men, who were deported from the United States to the Cuban military base, claim they were taken off a plane without any prior notification, describing it as a "kidnapping."
They have been subjected to freezing temperatures and are shackled at all times, according to accounts from Mohamed, one of the detainees, as well as community leaders and journalists who have communicated with the inmates. This escalation marks a significant shift in the Trump administration's anti-immigrant stance, as he has previously labeled Somalis as contributory nothing to the United States and vowed to keep them out of the country.
Last year, President Trump deployed thousands of ICE and Border Patrol agents in Minnesota, the state with the highest concentration of Somalis in the US, to crack down on immigration. Guantanamo Bay has long been an emblem of injustice, abuse, and disregard for the rule of law, notorious for reports of torture and mistreatment of detainees connected to the War on Terror.
In recent years, the US military and the Central Intelligence Agency have utilized the base as a detention facility for individuals suspected of terrorism. In August, the administration ordered the Pentagon and DHS, which includes ICE, to use the Migrant Operations Center at Guantanamo to house up to 30,000 of the "worst of the worst" immigrants.
While this specific goal has not been met, ICE has used the facility intermittently to detain immigrants from various countries, including Cuba, Nicaragua, and Venezuela. In addition to the 12 Somali men, at least some of the detainees have reportedly expressed their disbelief at being sent to Guantanamo, while others have indicated they are not criminals or have not been charged with any crimes.
Conditions at the detention center are reported to be harsh, with cameras in the showers and bathrooms.
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