As of early March 2025, the arrival of migrants at Guantánamo Bay has been dramatically lower than anticipated, as authorities work on making preparations for future detentions.
Guantánamo Bay's Tent City Project for Migrants Hits Delays
Guantánamo Bay's Tent City Project for Migrants Hits Delays
The Trump administration's ambitious migrant mission at Guantánamo is stalled, with only a small fraction of expected arrivals documented.
In little over a month since its announcement, the Trump administration has moved fewer than 300 men from an immigration detention facility in Texas to the U.S. military base at Guantánamo Bay. Current statistics reveal that only 40 migrants reside within the base in Cuba as of the past weekend, and in many cases, these individuals have been sent back to the United States without clear explanations just days after their arrival.
On January 29, President Trump indicated that Guantánamo would be ready to accommodate up to 30,000 migrants awaiting deportation, prompting the Defense and Homeland Security Departments to initiate construction of tent facilities to support this influx. However, despite the groundwork that has been laid, the sites remain unopened.
Regarding capacity, officials recently informed members of Congress that the facility can currently hold only 225 immigration detainees at any given time. Migrants can be housed in a small dormitory structure near the airport, which has space for just 50 men. The remainder would likely be contained within a previously used Pentagon prison facility known as Camp 6, which until January had housed suspected Al Qaeda affiliates captured during terrorism-related military operations.
Despite some progress, the construction of a large tent city hit a snag weeks ago, leaving approximately 195 tents set up but unoccupied. Each tent can accommodate 10 to 12 cots, yet remains vacant as officials grapple with operational uncertainties. This slow start raises questions about the feasibility of fulfilling the stated goal of processing tens of thousands of migrants at the base.
On January 29, President Trump indicated that Guantánamo would be ready to accommodate up to 30,000 migrants awaiting deportation, prompting the Defense and Homeland Security Departments to initiate construction of tent facilities to support this influx. However, despite the groundwork that has been laid, the sites remain unopened.
Regarding capacity, officials recently informed members of Congress that the facility can currently hold only 225 immigration detainees at any given time. Migrants can be housed in a small dormitory structure near the airport, which has space for just 50 men. The remainder would likely be contained within a previously used Pentagon prison facility known as Camp 6, which until January had housed suspected Al Qaeda affiliates captured during terrorism-related military operations.
Despite some progress, the construction of a large tent city hit a snag weeks ago, leaving approximately 195 tents set up but unoccupied. Each tent can accommodate 10 to 12 cots, yet remains vacant as officials grapple with operational uncertainties. This slow start raises questions about the feasibility of fulfilling the stated goal of processing tens of thousands of migrants at the base.
