Trump to expand Guantanamo Bay after Laken Riley Act

AlArabiya English

A US detention facility in Cuba… a new law with bipartisan support… and US President Donald Trump making waves on immigration policy. What’s going on with Guantanamo Bay and the Laken Riley Act? Let’s break it down.

Transcript

00:00A detention facility in Cuba, a new law with bipartisan support, and a president making

00:05waves on immigration policy.

00:08What's going on with Guantanamo Bay and the Lake and Riley Act?

00:11Let's break it down.

00:16Guantanamo Bay is best known for detaining terrorism suspects after 9-11.

00:21But did you know it also has a migrant detention facility?

00:25Until now, it's been used to hold small groups of people intercepted at sea.

00:29But U.S. President Donald Trump just signed an order to expand it to hold up to 30,000 migrants.

00:34Today, I'm also signing an executive order to instruct the Departments of Defense and

00:40Homeland Security to begin preparing the 30,000-person migrant facility at Guantanamo Bay.

00:46Most people don't even know about it.

00:47But who will be sent there?

00:49Homeland Security says, quote, the worst of the worst criminal immigrants.

00:54But this expansion is directly tied to the Lake and Riley Act, which Trump signed into

00:58law the same day.

00:59It mandates the detention of undocumented immigrants who have been accused of crimes.

01:04Named after a Georgia nursing student tragically killed by an illegal immigrant, the law ensures

01:09that migrants charged with theft, violent crimes, and more will be detained, potentially

01:14in places like the expanded Guantanamo facility.

01:18Supporters say it's about safety and accountability.

01:20Opponents argue it undermines due process and lacks funding, an estimated $83 billion

01:26over three years.

01:28Despite concerns, some Democrats backed it, reflecting voter demand for stricter immigration

01:33policies.

01:34With immigration being a hot issue, both the Guantanamo expansion and the Lake and Riley

01:39Act signal a tough new era of enforcement.

01:42Will the law and expansion be effective or simply cause more challenges?

01:46Only time will tell where the future of U.S. immigration is headed.

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