Migrant flights to Guantánamo Bay have begun. Satellite images show activity at naval base

The first U.S. military aircraft carrying detained migrants to Guantánamo Bay departed from Texas on Tuesday, U.S. officials said, as President Donald Trump's administration prepares to potentially house tens of thousands of migrants at the naval base in Cuba.

The U.S. has "30,000 beds in Guantánamo Bay to detain the worst criminal illegal aliens threatening the American people," Trump said on Jan. 29.

Trump issued his memo instructing the Department of Defense and the Department of Homeland Security to prepare for the arrival of 30,000 migrants at Guantánamo Bay. The facility in Cuba was used to detain military prisoners, including some linked to the 9/11 attacks.

Guantánamo Bay is primarily recognized as a military base for holding terror suspects and gained notoriety, following allegations of torture and mistreatment during the U.S. war on terrorism. On Jan. 6, according to the Defense Department, the Biden administration reduced operations at the facility, transferring 11 prisoners who were Yemeni nationals to the country of Oman.

That reduced the site's detainee population to 15 people, down from its maximum number of 680 in 2003.

Who runs Guantánamo Bay?

According to the United States' lease with Cuba, the U.S. retains jurisdiction while Cuba maintains sovereignty over the 45-square-mile installation, which is surrounded by a fence line that stretches over 17 miles.

Where is Guantánamo Bay?

Naval Station Guantánamo Bay is located on 45 square miles of land and water.  The naval base is made up of three main geographical sections: Leeward Point, Windward Point and Guantánamo Bay.

Leeward Point has an active airfield. It is also the site of three beaches and a nearby U.S. Naval cemetery.

Windward Point, a closed airfield, contains most of the naval station facilities, including detention camps.

Marines arrive at Naval Station Guantánamo Bay

The U.S. Southern Command said more than 150 U.S. Marines and U.S. Army members started arriving at the Naval base in the first weekend of February.

They included 1st Battalion, 6th Marine Regiment, 2d Marine Division and elements from U.S. Southern Command, and U.S. Army South. They joined service members already at the base supporting migrant holding operations led by Department of Homeland Security. More than 300 military personnel are already stationed at the base.

Dozens of tents were erected on Leeward Point between Jan. 30 and Feb. 4.

First flight to Guantánamo Bay

The C-17 plane left El Paso, Texas, on Tuesday with a small number of migrants aboard headed for the high-security prison facility that has been used to hold al Qaeda detainees. The deportation flight landed at at 7:20 p.m. ET, according to U.S. Transportation Command.

U.S. Department of Homeland Security spokesperson Tricia McLaughlin said the military flight to Guantánamo Bay carried nine to 10 immigrants. McLaughlin called them "highly dangerous criminal aliens" but declined to provide further details.

History of Naval Station Guantánamo Bay

The military flights are a costly way to transport migrants. Reuters reported that a military deportation flight to Guatemala last week likely cost at least $4,675 per migrant.

Trump has increasingly turned to the military to help carry out his immigration agenda, including sending additional troops to the border, using military aircraft to fly migrants out of the United States, and opening military bases to help house them.

Military flights have already deported migrants to Guatemala, Peru, Honduras and India.

SOURCE Paste BN Network reporting and research; Reuters; U.S. Department of Defense; Department of Homeland Security Military.com