Shift in Guantanamo Bay: Migrant Tents Dismantled Amid Controversy

Following a controversial expansion plan initiated by President Trump, satellite imagery shows that nearly two-thirds of the migrant tents set up at Guantanamo Bay have been removed. The Pentagon defends this move as a strategic resource adjustment, although uncertainty surrounds the current condition of detainees and future use of the facility.

The US has recently dismantled a substantial portion of the migrant tent camp at Guantanamo Bay Naval Base, as indicated by satellite images reviewed by BBC Verify. Initially authorized by President Donald Trump shortly after he took office, the facility was designed to hold up to 30,000 migrants; however, only a small number were ever accommodated there.

According to a Department of Defense official, the Pentagon spent approximately $38 million on operations related to deportation and detention at Guantanamo in just the first month of 2023. As of 16 April, satellite imagery shows that about two-thirds of the approximately 260 tents established for the operation had been removed. A US defense official commented on the tent removal, stating, "This force adjustment represents a deliberate and efficient use of resources - not a reduction in readiness."

Construction of the camp began a mere day after President Trump’s announcement and continued until early March, which represented a notable expansion to the Guantanamo Migrant Operations Center. This facility, distinct from the military prison that houses terrorism suspects, had been repurposed for migrant detentions.

Photographs taken on 1 April depicted clusters of green and white military tents, but by 10 April, many had been deconstructed. Further imagery indicates that around 175 tents were dismantled by mid-April, although the number of migrants remaining in the facility remains unclear.

Stephen Miller, deputy chief of staff at the White House, asserted that the base remains operational with "a large number of foreign terrorist aliens" still present. However, the White House has yet to comment on whether the removal of tents signifies a retreat from Trump's original plans to expand the detention center.

Despite the initial promise to accommodate 30,000 migrants, it appears that the majority of detainees at the site—estimated at 2,500—remain. BBC Verify’s analysis suggests the tents would only provide accommodation for fewer than 3,000 individuals, based on military sleeping regulations.

Trump previously indicated that the expansion was primarily for holding undocumented migrants considered dangerous or a risk to national security, claiming, "Some of them are so bad we don't even trust the countries to hold them."

In the two and a half months since the camp's opening, around 400 migrants have reportedly been transported to Guantanamo, with more than half having been returned to the US, while others have faced deportation—177 individuals were reported sent to Venezuela via Honduras on 20 February.

On 28 March, five Democratic senators visited the base and expressed their outrage regarding "the scale and wastefulness" of the military's handling of migrant detention, labeling the camp as an effort to undermine legal processes and due scrutiny. The senators condemned the costs associated with this operation, which they argue place an unfair burden on American taxpayers.