Guantanamo Protesters Demonstrate in DC

Hundreds of protesters gathered in front of the White House and marched to the Supreme Court on Wednesday to mark the 10th anniversary of the opening of the U.S. military detention camp at the Guantanamo Bay U.S. naval base in eastern Cuba.

            

Several of the demonstrators dressed in orange prison jumpsuits and covered their heads with black bags as they lined up in front of the White House. 

             

The United States set up the camp after U.S.-led forces invaded Afghanistan to oust the al Qaeda network that launched the hijacked plane attacks on September 11th, 2001.

 

Obama ordered the camp closed by January 2010, but missed the deadline. 

 

Nearly half the remaining prisoners are Yemenis.

 

The president suspended transfers to that nation due to reports that an al Qaeda affiliate there was behind a failed attempt to blow up a U.S. airplane on Christmas Day 2009.              

 

Congress blocked funding for Obama's plan to move some detainees to the United States and tightly restricted all transfers out of Guantanamo.