Joint Task Force Guantanamo
Encyclopedia
Joint Task Force Guantanamo (JTF-GTMO) is a U.S. military joint task force
based at Guantanamo Bay Naval Base
, Guantánamo Bay, Cuba on the southeastern end of the island. JTF-GTMO falls under US Southern Command. Since around 2002 the unit has operated the Guantanamo Bay detention camps Camp X-Ray
and its successors Camp Delta
, Camp V, and Camp Echo where there are detained prisoners captured in the war in Afghanistan
after the September 11, 2001 attacks
. The unit is currently under the command of Rear Admiral
Jeffrey Harbeson, who replaced Rear Admiral Tom Copeman in June 2010. Previous commanders have included Army Major General Geoffrey D. Miller, who took command in November 2002.
The status of these detainees is disputed. The United States
government defines them as enemy combatant
s, claiming their status was not that of a prisoner of war
as recognized under the Geneva Conventions
(due to not being affiliated with any government, being alleged members of Al Qaida or groups affiliated with them). On June 29, 2006, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in Hamdan v. Rumsfeld
that they had the minimal protection of Article 3 of the Geneva Conventions in that detainees must be housed and treated humanely.
was established to prepare for a mass migration of refugees from Haiti and Cuba. In 1994, Operation Sea Signal led to the creation of Joint Task Force 160. JTF 160 was responsible for housing and processing more than 40,000 migrants awaiting repatriation or parole to the United States. Camp X-Ray
was established to segregate migrants who had committed crimes such as theft, assault and battery, prostitution and black-market activities from other migrants and from U.S. civilians and military service members at Guantanamo.
In 1996, Operation Sea Signal came to an end. Camp X-Ray was abandoned.
In December 2001, after the September 11 terrorist attacks, Joint Task Force 160 was reactivated. Camp X-Ray was prepared as a temporary location for detention operations. In January 2002, the first detainees are brought to Guantanamo Bay and housed in Camp X-Ray. The International Committee of the Red Cross makes its first visit six days later. The ICRC has continued quarterly visits up to 2010. In February 2002, Joint Task Force 170 was created as the intelligence task force to work side by side with Joint Task Force 160.
In April 2002, construction of the new 410-bed Camp Delta
(Camps 1, 2, 3) was completed. The detainees were moved from Camp X-Ray to Camp Delta that month. In November 2002 Joint Task Force 160 and 170 were merged to create Joint Task Force Guantanamo.
The Joint Detention Group is one of the components of the Task Force. It is the organization assigned to guarding the captives, and maintaining camp security.
The guards within the Joint Detention Group come from the United States Army
, United States Navy
, and other United States Armed Services.
In 2009, guards outnumbered prisoners in Guantanamo by more than five to one.
The officers commanding the Joint Detention Group have included:
Each prefab unit houses four to six personnel. Each prefab unit ships with a toilet and sink, but no internal partitions. Occupants are allowed to erect curtains to make temporary partitions, for privacy. Occupants share communal showers, shared between prefab quarters.
Officers and senior non-commissioned officers typically share cottages left over from family residences that were constructed when the base had a larger permanent population.
Four occupants will share a two bedroom cottage.
According to Commander
Daniel Jones
, JTF-GTMO's Staff Judge Advocate, JTF-GTMO staff:
"The chow here is probably the best I’ve had and a mainstay of each day’s activities. A surf and turf and special birthday meal are served at least once a month. By the end of your tour in GTMO you’ll either weigh 300 pounds or be able to bench press 300 pounds. Nevertheless, you can look forward to a farewell BBQ and presentation of the highly coveted GTMO Bar Association Certificate."
Joint Task Force Guantánamo
's motto is 'Honor Bound to Defend Freedom.'
Guantanamo: Honor Bound to Defend Freedom is the title of a 2004 book by Victoria Brittain (a former The Guardian
foreign editor) and novelist Gillian Slovo (ISBN 1-84002-474-7).
Guantanamo: Honor Bound to Defend Freedom is also a 2004 play, based upon interviews with the families of men detained in Guantanamo Bay, by the same authors. It premiered at the Tricycle Theatre
in London in 2004 and transferred to Off Broadway.
Joint Task Force
Joint Task Force is a PC real-time tactics game where players command military forces in combat situations based on modern day conflicts.The game includes officially licensed vehicles and weapons systems from major defense contractors including Boeing, Lockheed Martin, General Dynamics, Northrop...
based at Guantanamo Bay Naval Base
Guantanamo Bay Naval Base
Guantanamo Bay Naval Base is located on of land and water at Guantánamo Bay, Cuba which the United States leased for use as a coaling station following the Cuban-American Treaty of 1903. The base is located on the shore of Guantánamo Bay at the southeastern end of Cuba. It is the oldest overseas...
, Guantánamo Bay, Cuba on the southeastern end of the island. JTF-GTMO falls under US Southern Command. Since around 2002 the unit has operated the Guantanamo Bay detention camps Camp X-Ray
Camp X-Ray
Camp X-Ray was a temporary detention facility at the Guantanamo Bay detention camp of Joint Task Force Guantanamo on the U.S. Naval Base in Guantánamo Bay, Cuba.The first twenty detainees arrived at Guantanamo on January 11, 2002....
and its successors Camp Delta
Camp Delta
Camp Delta is a permanent detainment camp at Guantanamo Bay that replaced the temporary facilities of Camp X-Ray. Its first facilities were built between February 27 and mid-April 2002 by Navy Seabees, Marine Engineers, and workers from Halliburton subsidiary Kellogg, Brown and Root...
, Camp V, and Camp Echo where there are detained prisoners captured in the war in Afghanistan
War in Afghanistan (2001–present)
The War in Afghanistan began on October 7, 2001, as the armed forces of the United States of America, the United Kingdom, Australia, and the Afghan United Front launched Operation Enduring Freedom...
after the September 11, 2001 attacks
September 11, 2001 attacks
The September 11 attacks The September 11 attacks The September 11 attacks (also referred to as September 11, September 11th or 9/119/11 is pronounced "nine eleven". The slash is not part of the pronunciation...
. The unit is currently under the command of Rear Admiral
Rear Admiral
Rear admiral is a naval commissioned officer rank above that of a commodore and captain, and below that of a vice admiral. It is generally regarded as the lowest of the "admiral" ranks, which are also sometimes referred to as "flag officers" or "flag ranks"...
Jeffrey Harbeson, who replaced Rear Admiral Tom Copeman in June 2010. Previous commanders have included Army Major General Geoffrey D. Miller, who took command in November 2002.
The status of these detainees is disputed. The United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
government defines them as enemy combatant
Enemy combatant
Enemy combatant is a term historically referring to members of the armed forces of the state with which another state is at war. Prior to 2008, the definition was: "Any person in an armed conflict who could be properly detained under the laws and customs of war." In the case of a civil war or an...
s, claiming their status was not that of a prisoner of war
Prisoner of war
A prisoner of war or enemy prisoner of war is a person, whether civilian or combatant, who is held in custody by an enemy power during or immediately after an armed conflict...
as recognized under the Geneva Conventions
Geneva Conventions
The Geneva Conventions comprise four treaties, and three additional protocols, that establish the standards of international law for the humanitarian treatment of the victims of war...
(due to not being affiliated with any government, being alleged members of Al Qaida or groups affiliated with them). On June 29, 2006, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in Hamdan v. Rumsfeld
Hamdan v. Rumsfeld
Hamdan v. Rumsfeld, 548 U.S. 557 , is a case in which the Supreme Court of the United States held that military commissions set up by the Bush administration to try detainees at Guantanamo Bay lack "the power to proceed because its structures and procedures violate both the Uniform Code of Military...
that they had the minimal protection of Article 3 of the Geneva Conventions in that detainees must be housed and treated humanely.
History
In 1992, Operation Sea SignalOperation Sea Signal
Operation Sea Signal was a United States Military humanitarian operation in the Caribbean in response to an influx of Cuban and Haitian migrants attempting to gain asylum in the United States. As a result, the migrants became refugees at Guantanamo Bay Naval Base. The operation took place from...
was established to prepare for a mass migration of refugees from Haiti and Cuba. In 1994, Operation Sea Signal led to the creation of Joint Task Force 160. JTF 160 was responsible for housing and processing more than 40,000 migrants awaiting repatriation or parole to the United States. Camp X-Ray
Camp X-Ray
Camp X-Ray was a temporary detention facility at the Guantanamo Bay detention camp of Joint Task Force Guantanamo on the U.S. Naval Base in Guantánamo Bay, Cuba.The first twenty detainees arrived at Guantanamo on January 11, 2002....
was established to segregate migrants who had committed crimes such as theft, assault and battery, prostitution and black-market activities from other migrants and from U.S. civilians and military service members at Guantanamo.
In 1996, Operation Sea Signal came to an end. Camp X-Ray was abandoned.
In December 2001, after the September 11 terrorist attacks, Joint Task Force 160 was reactivated. Camp X-Ray was prepared as a temporary location for detention operations. In January 2002, the first detainees are brought to Guantanamo Bay and housed in Camp X-Ray. The International Committee of the Red Cross makes its first visit six days later. The ICRC has continued quarterly visits up to 2010. In February 2002, Joint Task Force 170 was created as the intelligence task force to work side by side with Joint Task Force 160.
In April 2002, construction of the new 410-bed Camp Delta
Camp Delta
Camp Delta is a permanent detainment camp at Guantanamo Bay that replaced the temporary facilities of Camp X-Ray. Its first facilities were built between February 27 and mid-April 2002 by Navy Seabees, Marine Engineers, and workers from Halliburton subsidiary Kellogg, Brown and Root...
(Camps 1, 2, 3) was completed. The detainees were moved from Camp X-Ray to Camp Delta that month. In November 2002 Joint Task Force 160 and 170 were merged to create Joint Task Force Guantanamo.
The Joint Detention Group is one of the components of the Task Force. It is the organization assigned to guarding the captives, and maintaining camp security.
The guards within the Joint Detention Group come from the United States Army
United States Army
The United States Army is the main branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for land-based military operations. It is the largest and oldest established branch of the U.S. military, and is one of seven U.S. uniformed services...
, United States Navy
United States Navy
The United States Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the seven uniformed services of the United States. The U.S. Navy is the largest in the world; its battle fleet tonnage is greater than that of the next 13 largest navies combined. The U.S...
, and other United States Armed Services.
In 2009, guards outnumbered prisoners in Guantanamo by more than five to one.
The officers commanding the Joint Detention Group have included:
- ColonelColonelColonel , abbreviated Col or COL, is a military rank of a senior commissioned officer. It or a corresponding rank exists in most armies and in many air forces; the naval equivalent rank is generally "Captain". It is also used in some police forces and other paramilitary rank structures...
Adolph McQueenAdolph McQueenAdolph McQueen is an officer in the United States Army.-Armed service career:McQueen first joined the United States Marine Corps, in the enlisted ranks, in 1971.Eleven years later, in 1982, he received a direct commission into the United States Army....
, 2002 - ColonelColonelColonel , abbreviated Col or COL, is a military rank of a senior commissioned officer. It or a corresponding rank exists in most armies and in many air forces; the naval equivalent rank is generally "Captain". It is also used in some police forces and other paramilitary rank structures...
Michael BumgarnerMichael BumgarnerColonel Michael Bumgarner is an officer in the United States Armed Services.In 2005 and 2006, he was the commander of the Joint Detention Group, the guard force component of Joint Task Force Guantanamo....
, 2006 - ColonelColonelColonel , abbreviated Col or COL, is a military rank of a senior commissioned officer. It or a corresponding rank exists in most armies and in many air forces; the naval equivalent rank is generally "Captain". It is also used in some police forces and other paramilitary rank structures...
Bruce VargoBruce VargoColonel Bruce Vargo is a Military Police officer in the United States Army.He was appointed the commander of Joint Task Force Guantanamo's Joint Detention Group -- its guard force....
, 2008, 2009
Living quarters
Enlisted personnel live in prefabicated quarters, similar to shipping containers.Each prefab unit houses four to six personnel. Each prefab unit ships with a toilet and sink, but no internal partitions. Occupants are allowed to erect curtains to make temporary partitions, for privacy. Occupants share communal showers, shared between prefab quarters.
Officers and senior non-commissioned officers typically share cottages left over from family residences that were constructed when the base had a larger permanent population.
Four occupants will share a two bedroom cottage.
According to Commander
Commander
Commander is a naval rank which is also sometimes used as a military title depending on the individual customs of a given military service. Commander is also used as a rank or title in some organizations outside of the armed forces, particularly in police and law enforcement.-Commander as a naval...
Daniel Jones
Daniel Jones
Daniel Jones is the name of:* Daniel Jones , phonetician, author of The Pronunciation of English* Daniel Jones , chancellor of the University of Mississippi* Daniel Jones , Welsh composer...
, JTF-GTMO's Staff Judge Advocate, JTF-GTMO staff:
"The chow here is probably the best I’ve had and a mainstay of each day’s activities. A surf and turf and special birthday meal are served at least once a month. By the end of your tour in GTMO you’ll either weigh 300 pounds or be able to bench press 300 pounds. Nevertheless, you can look forward to a farewell BBQ and presentation of the highly coveted GTMO Bar Association Certificate."
Task Force motto
Joint Task Force Guantanamo
Joint Task Force Guantanamo is a U.S. military joint task force based at Guantanamo Bay Naval Base, Guantánamo Bay, Cuba on the southeastern end of the island. JTF-GTMO falls under US Southern Command...
's motto is 'Honor Bound to Defend Freedom.'
Guantanamo: Honor Bound to Defend Freedom is the title of a 2004 book by Victoria Brittain (a former The Guardian
The Guardian
The Guardian, formerly known as The Manchester Guardian , is a British national daily newspaper in the Berliner format...
foreign editor) and novelist Gillian Slovo (ISBN 1-84002-474-7).
Guantanamo: Honor Bound to Defend Freedom is also a 2004 play, based upon interviews with the families of men detained in Guantanamo Bay, by the same authors. It premiered at the Tricycle Theatre
Tricycle Theatre
The Tricycle Theatre is located on Kilburn High Road in Kilburn in the London Borough of Brent, England. During the last 30 years, the Tricycle has been presenting plays reflecting the cultural diversity of its community; in particular Black, Irish, Jewish, Asian and South African works, as well as...
in London in 2004 and transferred to Off Broadway.