Guantanamo Bay Naval Base ( es, Base Naval de la Bahía de Guantánamo), officially known as Naval Station Guantanamo Bay or NSGB, (also called GTMO, pronounced Gitmo as jargon by members of the

U.S. military The United States Armed Forces are the military forces of the United States. The armed forces consists of six service branches: the Army, Marine Corps, Navy, Air Force, Space Force, and Coast Guard. The president of the United States is the ...

) is a United States military base located on of land and water on the shore of

Guantánamo Bay Guantánamo Bay ( es, Bahía de Guantánamo) is a bay in Guantánamo Province at the southeastern end of Cuba. It is the largest harbor on the south side of the island and it is surrounded by steep hills which create an enclave that is cut off ...

at the southeastern end of

Cuba Cuba ( , ), officially the Republic of Cuba ( es, República de Cuba, links=no ), is an island country comprising the island of Cuba, as well as Isla de la Juventud and several minor archipelagos. Cuba is located where the northern Caribbea ...

. It has been permanently leased to the United States since 1903 as a

coaling station Fuelling stations, also known as coaling stations, are repositories of fuel (initially coal and later oil) that have been located to service commercial and naval vessels. Today, the term "coaling station" can also refer to coal storage and feedin ...

and

naval base A naval base, navy base, or military port is a military base, where warships and naval ships are docked when they have no mission at sea or need to restock. Ships may also undergo repairs. Some naval bases are temporary homes to aircraft that us ...

, making it the oldest overseas U.S. naval base in the world. The lease was $2,000 in gold per year until 1934, when the payment was set to match the value in gold in dollars; in 1974, the yearly lease was set to $4,085. Since taking power in 1959, the Cuban

communist Communism (from Latin la, communis, lit=common, universal, label=none) is a far-left sociopolitical, philosophical, and economic ideology and current within the socialist movement whose goal is the establishment of a communist society, a s ...

government has consistently protested against the U.S. presence on Cuban soil, arguing that the base "was imposed on Cuba by force" and is "illegal under international law." Since 2002, the naval base has contained a military prison, for alleged

unlawful combatant An unlawful combatant, illegal combatant or unprivileged combatant/belligerent is a person who directly engages in armed conflict in violation of the laws of war and therefore is claimed not to be protected by the Geneva Conventions. The Internati ...

s captured in

Afghanistan Afghanistan, officially the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan,; prs, امارت اسلامی افغانستان is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central Asia and South Asia. Referred to as the Heart of Asia, it is bordere ...

Iraq Iraq,; ku, عێراق, translit=Êraq officially the Republic of Iraq, '; ku, کۆماری عێراق, translit=Komarî Êraq is a country in Western Asia. It is bordered by Turkey to Iraq–Turkey border, the north, Iran to Iran–Iraq ...

, and other places during the

War on Terror The war on terror, officially the Global War on Terrorism (GWOT), is an ongoing international Counterterrorism, counterterrorism military campaign initiated by the United States following the September 11 attacks. The main targets of the campa ...

. Cases of alleged

torture Torture is the deliberate infliction of severe pain or suffering on a person for reasons such as punishment, extracting a confession, interrogation for information, or intimidating third parties. Some definitions are restricted to acts c ...

of prisoners by the U.S. military, and their denial of protection under the

Geneva Conventions upright=1.15, Original document in single pages, 1864 The Geneva Conventions are four treaties, and three additional protocols, that establish international legal standards for humanitarian treatment in war. The singular term ''Geneva Conven ...

, have been criticized. The 1903 lease has no fixed expiration date, it can only be ended if the US Navy decided to abandon the area or both countries agreed mutually to end the lease.

Geography

The Naval Base occupies three main geographical sections: Leeward Point, Windward Point, and

. Guantánamo Bay physically divides the Naval Station into sections. The bay extends past the boundaries of the base into Cuba, where the bay is then referred to as Bahía de Guantánamo. Guantánamo Bay contains several

cay A cay ( ), also spelled caye or key, is a small, low-elevation, sandy island on the surface of a coral reef. Cays occur in tropical environments throughout the Pacific, Atlantic, and Indian Oceans, including in the Caribbean and on the Great ...

s, which are identified as Hospital Cay, Medico Cay, North Toro Cay, and South Toro Cay. Leeward Point of the Naval Station is the site of the active airfield. Major geographical features on Leeward Point include Mohomilla Bay and the

Guantánamo River Guantánamo River is a river of southern Cuba, that flows Province of Guantánamo up to Guantánamo Bay. It is impounded by La Yaya Dam. See also *List of rivers of Cuba This is an incomplete list of rivers of Cuba, arranged from west to east, b ...

. Three beaches exist on the Leeward side. Two are available for use by base residents, while the third, Hicacal Beach, is closed. Windward Point contains most of the activities at the Naval Station. There are nine beaches available to base personnel. The highest point on the base is John Paul Jones Hill (named after the Revolutionary War hero of the same name) at a total of . The geography of Windward Point is such that there are many coves and peninsulas along the bay shoreline providing ideal areas for mooring ships. According to Stephen Benz, Stephen Crane described the area as "craggy" and "cut with ravines." He also described the coastline as covered in ridges and "chalky cliffs".

History

Guantanamo Bay Naval Base, Cuba, 1916 ‧ 1

Spanish era

The area surrounding Guantanamo bay was originally inhabited by the

Taíno people The Taíno were a historic indigenous people of the Caribbean whose culture has been continued today by Taíno descendant communities and Taíno revivalist communities. At the time of European contact in the late 15th century, they were the pri ...

. On 30 April 1494,

Christopher Columbus Christopher Columbus * lij, Cristoffa C(or)ombo * es, link=no, Cristóbal Colón * pt, Cristóvão Colombo * ca, Cristòfor (or ) * la, Christophorus Columbus. (; born between 25 August and 31 October 1451, died 20 May 1506) was a ...

, on his second voyage, arrived and spent the night. The place where Columbus landed is now known as Fisherman's Point. Columbus declared the bay ''Puerto Grande''. The bay and surrounding areas briefly came under

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies. ** Britishness, the British identity and common culture * British English, ...

control during the

War of Jenkins' Ear The War of Jenkins' Ear, or , was a conflict lasting from 1739 to 1748 between Britain and the Spanish Empire. The majority of the fighting took place in New Granada and the Caribbean Sea, with major operations largely ended by 1742. It is con ...

. Prior to the outbreak of the conflict, the bay was referred to as ''Walthenham Harbor'' by British cartographers. The British expeditionary force renamed the bay ''Cumberland Bay''. They eventually retreated from the area after an attempt to march to

Santiago de Cuba Santiago de Cuba is the second-largest city in Cuba and the capital city of Santiago de Cuba Province. It lies in the southeastern area of the island, some southeast of the Cuban capital of Havana. The municipality extends over , and contains t ...

was repulsed by Spanish troops.

Spanish–American War

During the Spanish–American War, the U.S. fleet attacking Santiago secured

Guantánamo Guantánamo (, , ) is a municipality and city in southeast Cuba and capital of Guantánamo Province. Guantánamo is served by the Caimanera port near the Guantanamo Bay Naval Base, site of a U.S. naval base. The area produces sugarcane and cotton ...

's harbor for protection during the hurricane season of 1898. To gain control of the bay, the First Marine Battalion was landed at Fisherman's Point, at the entrance to Guantanamo Bay. After being repeatedly attacked by Spanish forces, the First Marine Battalion, supported by Cuban allies and a U.S. Navy gunboat, attacked and defeated a Spanish force at the Battle of Cuzco Well. The action was highly significant in the U.S. gaining control of the bay. There is a monument on McCalla Hill to one Navy officer and five Marines who died in battle at Guantanamo Bay. The war ended with the

Treaty of Paris of 1898 The Treaty of Peace between the United States of America and the Kingdom of Spain, commonly known as the Treaty of Paris of 1898 ( fil, Kasunduan sa Paris ng 1898; es, Tratado de París de 1898), was a treaty signed by Spain and the United Stat ...

, in which Spain formally relinquished control of Cuba. Although the war was over, the United States maintained a strong military presence on the island. In 1901 the United States government passed the

Platt Amendment On March 2, 1901, the Platt Amendment was passed as part of the 1901 Army Appropriations Bill.1901 Platt Amendment commentary
at the United States Archives online Section VII of this amendment read After initial resistance by the Cuban Constitutional Convention, the Platt Amendment was incorporated into the

Constitution A constitution is the aggregate of fundamental principles or established precedents that constitute the legal basis of a polity, organisation or other type of Legal entity, entity and commonly determine how that entity is to be governed. When ...

of the

Republic of Cuba Cuba ( , ), officially the Republic of Cuba ( es, República de Cuba, links=no ), is an island country comprising the island of Cuba, as well as Isla de la Juventud and several minor archipelagos. Cuba is located where the northern Caribbean ...

in 1901. The Constitution took effect in 1902, and land for a naval base at Guantanamo Bay was granted to the United States the following year.''Agreement Between the United States and Cuba for the Lease of Lands for Coaling and Naval stations''
1903.

Permanent lease

The 1903 lease agreement, which has no fixed expiration date, was executed in two parts. The first, signed in February, consisted of the following provisions: #Agreement – The United States of America and the Republic of Cuba, desiring to maintain the Independence of Cuba, will enter into a lease for lands necessary for US Naval Stations. #Article 1 – Describes the boundaries of the areas being leased, Guantanamo Bay and Bahia Honda. #Article 2 – The U.S. may occupy, use, and modify the properties to fit the needs of a coaling and naval station, only. Vessels in the Cuban trade shall have free passage. #Article 3 – Cuba retains ultimate sovereignty, but during the occupation, the U.S. exercises sole jurisdiction over the areas described in Article 1. Under conditions to be agreed on, the U.S. has the right to acquire, by purchase or eminent domain, any land included therein. The second part, signed five months later in July 1903, consisted of the following provisions:''Lease to the United States by the Government of Cuba of Certain Areas of Land and Water for Naval or Coaling Stations in Guantanamo and Bahia Honda''
U.S. Federal Government, 1903. #Article 1 – Payment is $2000 gold coin, annually. All private lands within the boundaries shall be acquired by Cuba. The U.S. will advance rental payments to Cuba to facilitate those purchases. #Article 2 – The U.S. shall pay for a survey of the sites and mark the boundaries with fences. #Article 3 – There will be no commercial or other enterprise within the leased areas. #Article 4 – Mutual extradition #Article 5 – Not ports of entry. #Article 6 – Ships shall be subject to Cuban port police. The U.S. will not obstruct entry or departure into the bay. #Article 7 – This proposal is open for seven months. SIGNED Theodore Roosevelt and Jose M Garcia Montes. In 1934, the United States unilaterally changed the payment from gold coin to U.S. dollars per the

Gold Reserve Act The United States Gold Reserve Act of January 30, 1934 required that all gold and gold certificates held by the Federal Reserve be surrendered and vested in the sole title of the United States Department of the Treasury. It also prohibited the Tre ...

. The lease amount was set at US$3,386.25, based on the price of gold at the time. In 1973, the U.S. adjusted the lease amount to $3,676.50, and in 1974 to $4,085, based on further increases to the price of gold in USD. Payments have been sent annually, but only one lease payment has been accepted since the

Cuban Revolution The Cuban Revolution ( es, Revolución Cubana) was carried out after the 1952 Cuban coup d'état which placed Fulgencio Batista as head of state and the failed mass strike in opposition that followed. After failing to contest Batista in cou ...

and

Fidel Castro Fidel Alejandro Castro Ruz (; ; 13 August 1926 – 25 November 2016) was a Cuban revolutionary and politician who was the leader of Cuba from 1959 to 2008, serving as the prime minister of Cuba from 1959 to 1976 and president from 1976 to 200 ...

claimed that this check was deposited due to confusion in 1959. The Cuban government has not deposited any other lease check since that time. Shareds 1906 from GITMO

Pre World Wars

The Naval Base became a prime area for winter training for the Atlantic fleet. Due to the large increase in population during the training months, the Naval Base quickly established facilities to support everyday functions. Guantanamo Bay fleet range system began its construction as early as 1905 under Captain Rogers. Four primary ranges were built during its construction: Range Alpha, Range Beta, Range Charlie, and Range Delta. Due to the size of the base, sections were shut down in order for range operations to proceed. Ironically , the concrete range system's size and cost led to its downfall. Strong evidence suggests the fleet ranges were used throughout World War I and the beginning of World War II.

World War II

During

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

, the base was set up to use a nondescript number for postal operations. The base used the

Fleet Post Office Military mail, as opposed to civilian mail, refers to the postal services provided by armed forces that allow serving members to send and receive mail. Military mail systems are often subsidized to ensure that military mail does not cost the sen ...

, Atlantic, in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

, with the address: 115 FPO NY. The base was also an important intermediate distribution point for

merchant shipping Maritime transport (or ocean transport) and hydraulic effluvial transport, or more generally waterborne transport, is the transport of people ( passengers) or goods (cargo) via waterways. Freight transport by sea has been widely used thro ...

convoy A convoy is a group of vehicles, typically motor vehicles or ships, traveling together for mutual support and protection. Often, a convoy is organized with armed defensive support and can help maintain cohesion within a unit. It may also be used ...

s from New York City and

Key West, Florida Key West ( es, Cayo Hueso) is an island in the Straits of Florida, within the U.S. state of Florida. Together with all or parts of the separate islands of Sigsbee Park, Dredgers Key, Fleming Key, Sunset Key, and the northern part of Stock Isla ...

, to the

Panama Canal The Panama Canal ( es, Canal de Panamá, link=no) is an artificial waterway in Panama that connects the Atlantic Ocean with the Pacific Ocean and divides North and South America. The canal cuts across the Isthmus of Panama and is a conduit ...

and the islands of

Puerto Rico Puerto Rico (; abbreviated PR; tnq, Boriken, ''Borinquen''), officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico ( es, link=yes, Estado Libre Asociado de Puerto Rico, lit=Free Associated State of Puerto Rico), is a Caribbean island and Unincorporated ...

Jamaica Jamaica (; ) is an island country situated in the Caribbean Sea. Spanning in area, it is the third-largest island of the Greater Antilles and the Caribbean (after Cuba and Hispaniola). Jamaica lies about south of Cuba, and west of His ...

, and

Trinidad and Tobago Trinidad and Tobago (, ), officially the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago, is the southernmost island country in the Caribbean. Consisting of the main islands Trinidad and Tobago, and numerous much smaller islands, it is situated south of ...

.Hague, Arnold ''The Allied Convoy System 1939–1945'' Naval Institute Press 2000 p.111

Cold War and beyond

From 1953 to 1959, thousands of Cubans commuted daily from outside the base to jobs within it. In mid-1958, vehicular traffic was stopped; workers were required to walk through the base's several gates. Public Works Center buses were pressed into service almost overnight to carry the tides of workers to and from the gate. The "Cactus Curtain" is a term describing the line separating the naval base from Cuban-controlled territory, an allusion to Europe's

Iron Curtain The Iron Curtain was the political boundary dividing Europe into two separate areas from the end of World War II in 1945 until the end of the Cold War in 1991. The term symbolizes the efforts by the Soviet Union (USSR) to block itself and its s ...

, the

Bamboo Curtain The Bamboo Curtain is a Cold War political demarcation between the communist states of East Asia, particularly the People's Republic of China, and the capitalist and non-communist states of East, South, and Southeast Asia. To the north and nor ...

in East Asia, and the similar Ice Curtain in the Bering Strait. After the

, some Cubans sought refuge on the Guantanamo Bay Naval Base. In late 1961, Cuban troops planted an long, wide barrier of ''

Opuntia ''Opuntia'', commonly called prickly pear or pear cactus, is a genus of flowering plants in the cactus family Cactaceae. Prickly pears are also known as ''tuna'' (fruit), ''sabra'', ''nopal'' (paddle, plural ''nopales'') from the Nahuatl word f ...

'' cactus along the northeastern section of the fence surrounding the base in order to prevent checkpoint evasion when moving between the base and Cuba proper. The curtain forms part of a "

no man's land No man's land is waste or unowned land or an uninhabited or desolate area that may be under dispute between parties who leave it unoccupied out of fear or uncertainty. The term was originally used to define a contested territory or a dump ...

" that encircles the base. This area is complete with perimeter patrols, outposts featuring sandbags, and watchtowers, and has been complemented with barbed wire fences, minefields, and cacti. Apart from the cacti, both U.S. and Cuban troops erected, maintained, and otherwise manned these defenses, primarily to prevent checkpoint evasion and possible invasion from the other side. Marines stack mines for disposal

U.S. and Cuban troops placed some 55,000

anti-personnel An anti-personnel weapon is a weapon primarily used to maim or kill infantry and other personnel not behind armor, as opposed to attacking structures or vehicles, or hunting game. The development of defensive fortification and combat vehicles ga ...

and

anti-tank Anti-tank warfare originated from the need to develop technology and tactics to destroy tanks during World War I. Since the Triple Entente deployed the first tanks in 1916, the German Empire developed the first anti-tank weapons. The first deve ...

land mine A land mine is an explosive device concealed under or on the ground and designed to destroy or disable enemy targets, ranging from combatants to vehicles and tanks, as they pass over or near it. Such a device is typically detonated automati ...

s across the "no man's land" around the perimeter of the naval base, creating the second-largest minefield in the world, and the largest in the Western Hemisphere. Initially, the mines were laid down by US troops, who also laid down signs stating that the landmines were "precautions" and should not be viewed as "aggressive". In response, Cuban troops also laid down their own mines, with both sides completing their minefields in 1961. Between 1961 and 1965, landmine explosions resulted in the deaths of at least 10 people, including as the result of engineering accidents and late-night partygoers. On 16 May 1996, U.S. President

Bill Clinton William Jefferson Clinton ( né Blythe III; born August 19, 1946) is an American politician who served as the 42nd president of the United States from 1993 to 2001. He previously served as governor of Arkansas from 1979 to 1981 and agai ...

ordered the

demining Demining or mine clearance is the process of removing land mines from an area. In military operations, the object is to rapidly clear a path through a minefield, and this is often done with devices such as mine plows and blast waves. By contra ...

of the American field. They have since been replaced with

motion In physics, motion is the phenomenon in which an object changes its position with respect to time. Motion is mathematically described in terms of displacement, distance, velocity, acceleration, speed and frame of reference to an observer and mea ...

and sound sensors to detect intruders on the base. The Cuban government has not removed its corresponding minefield outside the perimeter. During the

Cuban Missile Crisis The Cuban Missile Crisis, also known as the October Crisis (of 1962) ( es, Crisis de Octubre) in Cuba, the Caribbean Crisis () in Russia, or the Missile Scare, was a 35-day (16 October – 20 November 1962) confrontation between the United S ...

in 1962, the families of military personnel were evacuated from the base. Notified of the evacuation on 22 October, evacuees were told to pack one suitcase per family member, to bring evacuation and immunization cards, to tie pets in the yard, to leave the keys to the house on the dining table, and to wait in front of the house for buses. Dependents travelled to the airfield for flights to the United States, or to ports for passage aboard evacuation ships. After the crisis was resolved, family members were allowed to return to the base in December 1962. From 1939, the base's water was supplied by pipelines that drew water from the

Yateras Yateras is a municipality in the Guantánamo Province of Cuba. The municipal seat is located in the town of Palenque, in the northern part of the province. Alejandro de Humboldt National Park, a UNESCO World Heritage Site is partly located in thi ...

River about northeast of the base. The U.S. government paid a fee for this; in 1964, it was about $14,000 a month for about per day. In 1964, the Cuban government stopped the flow. The base had about of water in storage, and strict water conservation was put into effect immediately. The U.S. first imported water from

by barge, then relocated a

desalination Desalination is a process that takes away mineral components from saline water. More generally, desalination refers to the removal of salts and minerals from a target substance, as in Soil salinity control, soil desalination, which is an issue f ...

plant from San Diego (

Point Loma Point Loma (Spanish: ''Punta de la Loma'', meaning "Hill Point"; Kumeyaay: ''Amat Kunyily'', meaning "Black Earth") is a seaside community within the city of San Diego, California. Geographically it is a hilly peninsula that is bordered on the w ...

). When the Cuban government accused the United States of "stealing water," base commander John D. Bulkeley ordered that the pipelines be cut and a section removed. A length of the diameter pipe and a length of the diameter pipe were lifted from the ground and the openings sealed. During the 1960s and 1970s, the base had problems with alcohol and racial tension. Harassment and strip searches also became a regular occurrence for Cuban workers on the base. USS Monongahela, 1903

Several old guns from the USS ''Monongahela'' (1862) have been salvaged and placed around the base. The old warship served as a storeship at Guantanamo until destroyed by fire on 17 March 1908. A gun was salvaged from her wreck and put on display at the Naval Station. Since the gun was deformed by the heat from the fire, it was nicknamed "Old Droopy". A similar gun, possibly also salvaged from the ''Monongahela'', is on display near the Bay View Club on the Naval Station. By 2006, only two elderly Cubans, Luis Delarosa and Harry Henry, still crossed the base's North East Gate daily to work on the base, because the Cuban government prohibited new recruitment since 1959. They both retired at the end of 2012. At the

United Nations Human Rights Council The United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC), CDH is a United Nations body whose mission is to promote and protect human rights around the world. The Council has 47 members elected for staggered three-year terms on a regional group basis. ...

in 2013, Cuba's Foreign Minister demanded the U.S. return the base.

Current operations

The military facilities at Guantanamo Bay have over 8,500 U.S. sailors and

Marines Marines, or naval infantry, are typically a military force trained to operate in littoral zones in support of naval operations. Historically, tasks undertaken by marines have included helping maintain discipline and order aboard the ship (refle ...

stationed there. It is the only military base the U.S. maintains in a

socialist country A socialist state, socialist republic, or socialist country, sometimes referred to as a workers' state or workers' republic, is a sovereign state constitutionally dedicated to the establishment of socialism. The term ''communist state'' is ofte ...

. In 2005, the U.S. Navy completed a $12 million

wind-power Wind power or wind energy is mostly the use of wind turbines to generate electricity. Wind power is a popular, sustainable, renewable energy source that has a much smaller impact on the environment than burning fossil fuels. Historically ...

project at the base, erecting four 950 kilowatt,

wind turbine A wind turbine is a device that converts the kinetic energy of wind into electrical energy. Hundreds of thousands of large turbines, in installations known as wind farms, now generate over 650 gigawatts of power, with 60 GW added each year. ...

s, reducing the need for

diesel fuel Diesel fuel , also called diesel oil, is any liquid fuel specifically designed for use in a diesel engine, a type of internal combustion engine in which fuel ignition takes place without a spark as a result of compression of the inlet air and t ...

to power the existing diesel generators (the base's primary

electricity generation Electricity generation is the process of generating electric power from sources of primary energy. For electric utility, utilities in the electric power industry, it is the stage prior to its Electricity delivery, delivery (Electric power transmi ...

). In 2006, the wind turbines reduced diesel fuel consumption by annually.

Units and commands

Access to the Naval Station is very limited and must be pre-approved through the appropriate local chain of command with the Commander of the station as the final approval. Since berthing facilities are limited, visitors must be sponsored indicating that they have an approved residence for the duration of the visit. ; Resident units * Headquarters, Naval Station Guantanamo Bay * Customer Service Desk (CSD) *

Joint Task Force Guantanamo 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 base. JTF-GTMO falls under US Southern Command. Since January 2002 the command ha ...

** Headquarters, JTF Guantanamo ** Joint Detention Group ** Joint Intelligence Group ** Joint Medical Group ** U.S. Coast Guard Maritime Security Detachment Guantanamo Bay **

AFN Guantanamo Bay Radio GTMO, officially titled AFN Guantanamo Bay, is the United States military radio station at Guantanamo Bay Naval Base (GTMO), in Cuba. Operated locally by Joint Task Force Guantanamo as part of the larger American Forces Network (AFN), t ...

radio and television unit * Marine Corps Security Force Company * Naval Computer and Telecommunications Area Master Station Atlantic Detachment Guantanamo Bay * Naval Hospital Guantanamo Bay * Navy Supply * Navy Security Forces * SEABEE Detachment * U.S. Coast Guard Aviation Detachment Guantanamo Bay ; Assigned units * Fleet Composite Squadron Ten (VC-10) (1965–1993) * U.S. Marine Corps Ground Defense Force (GDF) (1971–2000 edesignated as Marine Corps Security Forces Company on 1 Sep 2000 * Naval Security Group Activity (Company L) (1966–2001) * Shore Intermediate Maintenance Activity (SIMA) (1903–1995) * Fleet Training Group (FTG) (1943–1995) ; Homeported watercraft * YC 1639 ( open lighter) * ''Leeward'' (YFB-92) (ferry boat) * ''Windward'' (YFB-93) (ferry boat) * YON 258 (non-self propelled fuel oil barge) * (large harbor tug) * LCU 1671 and MK-8: landing craft used as an alternate ferry for transportation to areas inaccessible by the primary ferry and for moving hazardous cargo. * GTMO-5, GTMO-6 and GTMO-7 (50-ft. utility boats): used for personnel transportation during off-ferry hours. ; Civilian contractors Besides servicemembers, the base houses a large number of civilian contractors working for the military. Many of these contractors are migrant workers from

and the

Philippines The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no), * bik, Republika kan Filipinas * ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas * cbk, República de Filipinas * hil, Republ ...

, and are thought to constitute up to 40% of the base's population. Major contractors working at NSGB have included the following: * KBR * Schuyler Line Navigation Company (SLNC) * Satellite Communication Systems Incorporated * Centerra * EMCOR * Islands Mechanical Contractor * Munilla Construction Management * RQ Construction * MCM Construction * J&J Worldwide Services

Cargo shipping

Ocean transportation is provided by Schuyler Line Navigation Company, a U.S. Flag Ocean Carrier. Schuyler Line operates under government contract to supply sustainment and building supplies to the base.

Airfields

There are two airfields within the base,

Leeward Point Field Leeward Point Field , also known as Leeward Airfield, is a U.S. military airfield located at Naval Station Guantanamo Bay in Guantánamo Bay, Cuba. Facilities The airport resides at an elevation of above mean sea level. It has one runway desig ...

and McCalla Field. Leeward Point Field is the active military airfield, with the

ICAO The International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO, ) is a specialized agency of the United Nations that coordinates the principles and techniques of international air navigation, and fosters the planning and development of international a ...

code MUGM and

IATA The International Air Transport Association (IATA ) is a trade association of the world's airlines founded in 1945. IATA has been described as a cartel since, in addition to setting technical standards for airlines, IATA also organized tariff ...

code NBW. McCalla Field was designated as the auxiliary landing field in 1970, but was no longer a viable airfield by the 1990s.

Leeward Point Field

Leeward Point Field was constructed in 1953 as part of Naval Air Station (NAS) Guantanamo Bay. Leeward Point Field has a single active runway, 10/28, measuring . The former runway, 9/27 was . Currently, Leeward Point Field operates several aircraft and helicopters supporting base operations. Leeward Point Field was home to Fleet Composite Squadron 10 ( VC-10) until the unit was phased out in 1993. VC-10 was one of the last active-duty squadrons flying the

Douglas A-4 Skyhawk The Douglas A-4 Skyhawk is a single-seat subsonic carrier-capable light attack aircraft developed for the United States Navy and United States Marine Corps in the early 1950s. The delta-winged, single turbojet engined Skyhawk was designed a ...

McCalla Field

McCalla Field was established in 1931 and remained operational until 1970. The airfield was named for

Bowman H. McCalla Rear Admiral Bowman Hendry McCalla (June 19, 1844 – May 6, 1910) was an officer in the United States Navy, who was noted for his roles in the Spanish–American War and putting down the Boxer Rebellion. Biography Bowman H. McCalla was born in ...

, who was a

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage ...

admiral Admiral is one of the highest ranks in some navies. In the Commonwealth nations and the United States, a "full" admiral is equivalent to a "full" general in the army or the air force, and is above vice admiral and below admiral of the fleet, ...

in charge of the Battle of Guantánamo Bay. The current field was expanded in 1941 when the original grass runway was replaced. Naval Air Station Guantanamo Bay was officially established 1 February 1941. Aircraft routinely operating out of McCalla included JRF-5,

N3N The Naval Aircraft Factory N3N was an American tandem-seat, open cockpit, primary training biplane aircraft built by the Naval Aircraft Factory (NAF) in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, during the 1930s and early 1940s. Development and design Built t ...

J2F The Grumman J2F Duck (company designation G-15) is an American single-Reciprocating engine, engine amphibious aircraft, amphibious biplane. It was used by each major branch of the United States Armed Forces, U.S. armed forces from the mid-1930s ...

C-1 Trader The Grumman C-1 Trader is a carrier onboard delivery (COD) variant of the Grumman S-2 Tracker. It was replaced by a similar version of the Northrop Grumman E-2 Hawkeye, the Grumman C-2 Greyhound. Design and development The C-1 Trader grew out ...

, and dirigibles. The airfield was deactivated in the 1970s and was used to house Cuban and Haitian refugees beginning in the 1990s. Sometime between 1996 and 2001, the refugee camps were dismantled and the area became a collection of abandoned buildings. McCalla Field is now listed as a closed airfield. The USN aviation assets are now located across the bay at

. After the events of

September 11 Events Pre-1600 * 9 – The Battle of the Teutoburg Forest ends: The Roman Empire suffers the greatest defeat of its history and the Rhine is established as the border between the Empire and the so-called barbarians for the next four hu ...

, the area was reevaluated as a possible location for a detention facility. Camp Justice is now located on the grounds of the former airfield. The area consists of 3 runways: 1/19 at , 14/32 at , and 10/28 at . The airport resides at an

elevation The elevation of a geographic location is its height above or below a fixed reference point, most commonly a reference geoid, a mathematical model of the Earth's sea level as an equipotential gravitational surface (see Geodetic datum § Vert ...

of above

mean sea level There are several kinds of mean in mathematics Mathematics is an area of knowledge that includes the topics of numbers, formulas and related structures, shapes and the spaces in which they are contained, and quantities and their changes. ...

Detention camp

Beginning in the last quarter of the 20th century, the base was used to house Cuban and

Haitian refugees Haitian may refer to: Relating to Haiti * ''Haitian'', an adjective referring to something of, from, or related to Haiti ** Haitian Creole, a French-Creole based ** Haitian French, variant of the French language ** Haitians, an ethnic group * Hait ...

intercepted on the high seas. In the early 1990s, it held refugees who fled Haiti after military forces overthrew president

Jean-Bertrand Aristide Jean-Bertrand Aristide (born 15 July 1953) is a Haitian former Salesian priest and politician who became Haiti's first democratically elected president. A proponent of liberation theology, Aristide was appointed to a parish in Port-au-Prince in ...

. These refugees were held in a detainment area called Camp Bulkeley until

United States district court The United States district courts are the trial courts of the United States federal judiciary, U.S. federal judiciary. There is one district court for each United States federal judicial district, federal judicial district, which each cover o ...

Judge

Sterling Johnson, Jr. Sterling Johnson Jr. (May 14, 1934 – October 10, 2022) was a United States district judge of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of New York. Before his appointment to the bench in 1991, Johnson was an attorney for 25 y ...

declared the camp unconstitutional on 8 June 1993. This decision was later

vacated A vacated judgment (also known as vacatur relief) makes a previous legal judgment legally void. A vacated judgment is usually the result of the judgment of an appellate court, which overturns, reverses, or sets aside the judgment of a lower court. ...

. The last Haitian migrants departed Guantanamo on 1 November 1995. Beginning in 2002, following the U.S. invasion of Afghanistan, started in response to the

September 11 attacks The September 11 attacks, commonly known as 9/11, were four coordinated suicide terrorist attacks carried out by al-Qaeda against the United States on Tuesday, September 11, 2001. That morning, nineteen terrorists hijacked four commercia ...

, a small portion of the base was used to detain several hundred individuals with ties or suspected ties to Islamic terrorist groups such as

al-Qaeda Al-Qaeda (; , ) is an Islamic extremism, Islamic extremist organization composed of Salafist jihadists. Its members are mostly composed of Arab, Arabs, but also include other peoples. Al-Qaeda has mounted attacks on civilian and military ta ...

and the

Taliban The Taliban (; ps, طالبان, ṭālibān, lit=students or 'seekers'), which also refers to itself by its state (polity), state name, the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, is a Deobandi Islamic fundamentalism, Islamic fundamentalist, m ...

. These detainees were not afforded POW status or facing formal charges but instead designated

enemy combatants Enemy combatant is a person who, either lawfully or unlawfully, engages in hostilities for the other side in an armed conflict. Usually enemy combatants are members of the armed forces of the state with which another state is at war. In the case ...

; assigned to confinement in

Camp Delta Camp Delta is a permanent American detainment camp at Guantanamo Bay that replaced the temporary facilities of Camp X-Ray. Its first facilities were built between 27 February and mid-April 2002 by Navy Seabees, Marine Engineers, and workers f ...

, Camp Echo,

Camp Iguana Camp Iguana is a small compound in the detention camp complex on the US Naval base at Guantánamo Bay, Cuba. Camp Iguana originally held three child detainees, who camp spokesmen then claimed were the only detainees under age 16 (the age at wh ...

, and the now-closed Camp X-Ray. In litigation regarding the availability of

fundamental rights Fundamental rights are a group of rights that have been recognized by a high degree of protection from encroachment. These rights are specifically identified in a constitution, or have been found under due process of law. The United Nations' Sustai ...

to those imprisoned at the base, the

U.S. Supreme Court The Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) is the highest court in the federal judiciary of the United States. It has ultimate appellate jurisdiction over all U.S. federal court cases, and over state court cases that involve a point o ...

has recognized that the detainees "have been imprisoned in territory over which the United States exercises exclusive jurisdiction and control." Therefore, the detainees have the fundamental right to due process of law under the Fifth Amendment. A district court has since held that the "Geneva Conventions applied to the Taliban detainees, but not to members of Al-Qaeda terrorist organization." On 10 June 2006, the

Department of Defense Department of Defence or Department of Defense may refer to: Current departments of defence * Department of Defence (Australia) * Department of National Defence (Canada) * Department of Defence (Ireland) * Department of National Defense (Philipp ...

reported that three Guantanamo Bay detainees took their own lives. The military reported the men hanged themselves with nooses made of sheets and clothes.DOD Identifies 3 Guantanamo Suicides
''

The Washington Post ''The Washington Post'' (also known as the ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'') is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C. It is the most widely circulated newspaper within the Washington metropolitan area and has a large nati ...

'', 11 June 2006 A study published by Seton Hall Law's Center for Policy and Research, while making no conclusions regarding what actually transpired, asserts that the military investigation failed to address significant issues detailed in that report. On 6 September 2006, President

George W. Bush George Walker Bush (born July 6, 1946) is an American politician who served as the 43rd president of the United States from 2001 to 2009. A member of the Republican Party, Bush family, and son of the 41st president George H. W. Bush, he ...

announced that alleged or non-alleged combatants held by the CIA would be transferred to the custody of Department of Defense, and held at Guantanamo Prison. Of approximately 500 prisoners in Guantanamo Bay, only 10 have been

tried In law, a trial is a coming together of parties to a dispute, to present information (in the form of evidence) in a tribunal, a formal setting with the authority to adjudicate claims or disputes. One form of tribunal is a court. The tribunal, ...

by the

Guantanamo military commission ThGuantanamo military commissionswere established by President George W. Bush – through a Military Order – on November 13, 2001, to try certain non-citizen terrorism suspects at the Guantanamo Bay prison. To date, there have been a total of e ...

, but all cases have been stayed pending the adjustments being made to comply with the U.S. Supreme Court decision in ''

Hamdi v. Rumsfeld ''Hamdi v. Rumsfeld'', 542 U.S. 507 (2004), is a United States Supreme Court case in which the Court recognized the power of the U.S. government to detain enemy combatants, including U.S. citizens, but ruled that detainees who are U.S. citizens m ...

''. In January 2009,

President Obama Barack Hussein Obama II ( ; born August 4, 1961) is an American politician who served as the 44th president of the United States from 2009 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party, Obama was the first African-American president of the ...

signed an executive order directing the closing of the Guantánamo detention camp within a year. This plan was thwarted for the time being on 20 May 2009, when the

United States Senate The United States Senate is the upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the House of Representatives being the lower chamber. Together they compose the national bicameral legislature of the United States. The composition and pow ...

voted to keep the prison at Guantanamo Bay open for the foreseeable future and forbid the transfer of any detainees to facilities in the United States. Senator

Daniel Inouye Daniel Ken Inouye ( ; September 7, 1924 – December 17, 2012) was an American lawyer and politician who served as a United States senator from Hawaii from 1963 until his death in 2012. Beginning in 1959, he was the first U.S. representative f ...

, a Democrat from Hawaii and chairman of the appropriations committee, said he favored keeping Guantanamo open until Obama produced a "coherent plan for closing the prison." Consequently, Obama decided to postpone difficult decisions on the details for at least six months. On 7 March 2011, Obama issued a new executive order permitting indefinite detention of Guantánamo detainees. This decision was codified into federal law by provision added to the

National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2012 The National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) for Fiscal Year 2012112th Congress, 1st Session, H1540CR.HSE"National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2012."/ref> () is a United States federal law which among other things specifies the budget ...

. In early February 2021, the administration of U.S. President Joe Biden declared his intention to shut down the facility before he leaves office. In July 2021, an additional detainee was released. In June 2022, an Afghan prisoner held at Guantanamo Bay for about 15 years without trial was released.

Represented businesses

Despite the prohibition on the establishment of "commercial or other enterprises" as stated in Article 3 of the second part of the lease, several recognized American food outlets have been opened at the military base. Most of the restaurants on the installation are

franchises Franchise may refer to: Business and law * Franchising, a business method that involves licensing of trademarks and methods of doing business to franchisees * Franchise, a privilege to operate a type of business such as a cable television ...

which are owned and operated by the Department of the Navy. Proceeds from these restaurants are used to support morale, welfare, and recreation (MWR) activities for service personnel and their families. These restaurants are located inside the base; as such, they are not accessible to Cubans. A

Baskin-Robbins Baskin-Robbins is an American multinational chain of ice cream and cake speciality shops owned by Inspire Brands. Based in Canton, Massachusetts, Baskin-Robbins was founded in 1945 by Burt Baskin (1913–1967) and Irv Robbins (1917–2008) in ...

ice cream stand, which opened in the 1980s, was one of the first business franchises allowed on the base. In early 1986, the base added the first and only

McDonald's McDonald's Corporation is an American Multinational corporation, multinational fast food chain store, chain, founded in 1940 as a restaurant operated by Richard and Maurice McDonald, in San Bernardino, California, United States. They rechri ...

restaurant within Cuba. A

Subway restaurant Subway is an American multinational fast food restaurant franchise that specializes in submarine sandwiches (subs), wraps, salads and drinks. Subway was founded by 17-year-old Fred DeLuca and financed by Peter Buck in 1965 as Pete's Super ...

was opened in 2002. In 2004, a combined

KFC KFC (Kentucky Fried Chicken) is an American fast food restaurant chain headquartered in Louisville, Kentucky, that specializes in fried chicken. It is the world's second-largest restaurant chain (as measured by sales) after McDonald's, with 2 ...

& A&W restaurant was opened at the bowling alley and a

Pizza Hut Pizza Hut is an American multinational restaurant chain and international franchise founded in 1958 in Wichita, Kansas by Dan and Frank Carney. They serve their signature pan pizza and other dishes including pasta, breadsticks and dessert at d ...

Express was added to the Windjammer Restaurant. There is also a cafe that sells

Starbucks Starbucks Corporation is an American multinational chain of coffeehouses and roastery reserves headquartered in Seattle, Washington. It is the world's largest coffeehouse chain. As of November 2021, the company had 33,833 stores in 80 c ...

coffee, and there is a combined KFC &

Taco Bell Taco Bell is an American-based chain of fast food restaurants founded in 1962 by Glen Bell (1923–2010) in Downey, California. Taco Bell is a subsidiary of Yum! Brands, Inc. The restaurants serve a variety of Mexican-inspired foods, includi ...

restaurant.

Education and schooling

Department of Defense Education Activity The Department of Defense Education Activity (DoDEA) is a federal school system headquartered in Alexandria, Virginia, responsible for planning, directing, coordinating, and managing prekindergarten through 12th grade educational programs on behal ...

(DoDEA) provides for the education of dependent personnel with two schools. Both schools are named for Rear Admiral William Thomas Sampson. W.T. Sampson Elementary School serves grades K–5 and W. T. Sampson High School serves grades 6–12. The Villamar Child Development Center provides child care for dependents from six weeks to five years old. MWR operates a Youth Center that provides activities for dependents. Some former students of Guantánamo have shared stories of their experiences with the Guantánamo Public Memory Project. The 2013 documentary ''

Guantanamo Circus ''Guantanamo Circus'' is a half-hour documentary film released in 2013 directed by Christina Linhardt and Michael L. Rose. It records the arrival and five-day experience of a troupe of circus performers into Guantanamo Bay Naval Base to perfor ...

'' directed by

Christina Linhardt Christina Linhardt is a German-American singer, actor, and director, best known for her roles in the production of the film '' Guantanamo Circus'', and as the former fiancée of Prince Daniel of Saxony. Linhardt produced, directed, and wrote ''Gu ...

and Michael Rose reveals a glimpse of day-to-day life on GTMO as seen through the eyes of circus performers who visit the base. It is used as a reference by the Guantánamo Public Memory Project.

Climate

The bay has an annual rainfall of about . The amount of rainfall has resulted in the base being classified as a semi-arid desert environment. The annual average high temperature on the base is , the annual average low is .

Notable people

Notable people born at the naval base include actor

Peter Bergman Peter Michael Bergman (born June 11, 1953) is an American actor best known for his portrayals on soap operas, such as Cliff Warner on '' All My Children'' (1979–89) on ABC as well as Jack Abbott on ''The Young and the Restless'' (1989–prese ...

and American guitarist

Isaac Guillory Isaac Guillory (February 27, 1947 – December 31, 2000) was an American folk guitarist. Career Guillory first began performing in 1965, while still attending St. Johns River State College where he became a member of The Illusions, eventually b ...

References

External links

CNIC Naval Station Guantanamo Bay Official Website

Virtual 3D Walkthrough of Camp Delta (from the Art project Zone*Interdite)
{{Authority control Guantanamo Bay 1898 establishments in Cuba 1898 establishments in the United States Banana Wars Buildings and structures in Guantánamo Province Geography of Guantánamo Province International territorial disputes of the United States Military installations established in 1898 Military installations of the United States in Cuba Spanish–American War Territorial disputes of Cuba United States Navy installations War on terror