Washington – As tents were set up in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, to house migrants, attorneys at the Department of Homeland Security and the Pentagon were still determining whether it was legal to fly migrants from the US southern border to the facility, according to two US officials and a person familiar with the plans.
A military flight carrying migrants landed in Guantanamo Bay on Tuesday, according to a social media post from the US Transportation Command. According to a Homeland Security official, it carried approximately ten migrants with criminal records.
According to a US official and a source familiar, the migrants will be housed in Guantanamo’s detention facility, separate from the current detainees.
The decision follows President Donald Trump’s memorandum directing the federal government to prepare the US Naval base there to house tens of thousands of migrants. While Guantanamo Bay has a migrant processing center, it has primarily been used for migrants apprehended at sea and not brought from the United States.
“They’d be pushing the limits of where the (Immigration and Nationality Act) applies,” a former Homeland Security official explained. Immigration law applies in the United States, and it is unclear what will happen to those who leave the country only to be detained elsewhere.
According to a source familiar with the plan, questions about how long the migrants can legally be held there and their rights while detained remain unanswered. It is also unclear whether the migrants will have access to legal or social services while detained on the base.
Senior Trump administration officials have continued to promote the plan, portraying it as a facility designed for criminals.
“It’s the perfect place to provide for migrants who are traveling out of our country … but also hardened criminals,” Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said at the US southern border Monday.
Pentagon personnel have already been dispatched to the base to construct tents near the migrant operations center to accommodate migrants. The first tents went up last week, according to sources.
US Marines flew down over the weekend to assist with construction, and the Army will be there shortly to provide support services such as military police, a quartermaster feeding team, and a medical company.
The center’s maximum capacity is less than 200 people, demonstrating how significant this lift will be. According to sources familiar with the planning, the massive undertaking is expected to take 30 days.
According to a source familiar with the plans, private contractors and the government are also discussing the construction of several tent facilities capable of accommodating 30,000 people.
The facilities are expected to accommodate single adults. They are expected to be flown to Guantanamo Bay on military aircraft before being repatriated to their home countries.
Tent facilities have previously been used by federal immigration authorities to hold migrants along the US southern border, but they must meet certain standards and are only used temporarily.
Former Homeland Security officials have expressed concern about quickly establishing similar facilities at Guantanamo Bay without a clear understanding of how long and who will be detained.
Over the weekend, Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem told NBC’s “Meet the Press” that holding migrants indefinitely is “not the plan”.
“The plan is to follow a legal process and address these individuals in accordance with state and national laws. So, we’ll work with Congress to ensure that we’re enforcing our legal immigration laws and using Guantanamo Bay properly,” she said.
Under the Biden administration, Homeland Security officials considered using the center to temporarily house migrants in the event of a mass maritime migration. The process of expanding capacity was expected to take approximately 30 days, depending on what support elements could be brought in and how quickly.
Trump’s top immigration advisers previously told CNN that Immigration and Customs Enforcement would manage a migrant detention facility in Guantanamo Bay.
“We’re just going to expand upon existing migrant centers,” border czar Tom Homan said, adding that the facility would be overseen by “our migrant center run out of Miami.”
