More than a year after former President Donald Trump announced plans to detain 30,000 migrants at the Guantanamo Bay Naval Base, the facility currently holds just six immigration detainees, according to internal government documents obtained by CBS News.
These detainees, all Haitian nationals as of May 11, 2026, represent less than 2% of Guantanamo’s estimated 400-bed capacity designated for immigration detention. The documents show that since the operation began in February 2025, 832 migrants have been transferred to Guantanamo on over 100 flights, but most have since been deported or relocated.
Military and Staff Outnumber Detainees
The U.S. Department of Defense has assigned 522 military personnel to the immigration detention operation, supplemented by roughly 60 staff members from U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and other non-military agencies. Currently, employees outnumber detainees at the base by approximately 100 to 1.
The financial cost for maintaining the immigration detention mission at Guantanamo is projected to reach $73 million, significantly higher than the earlier estimate of $40 million provided publicly. This figure covers Department of Defense expenses alone, excluding other agency costs.
Controversy and Legal Challenges
Trump’s January 2025 announcement to establish 30,000 detention beds at the military base followed his tough stance on illegal immigration and a promise to hold “high-priority criminal aliens” at Guantanamo. However, reports from internal memos reveal the detainee population included both individuals labeled as “high-risk” and those considered “low-risk” or without serious criminal records.
Immigration detainees are housed in separate areas: low-risk detainees in a facility formerly used for asylum seekers, and higher-risk detainees at Camp VI, a section of Guantanamo that continues to hold terrorism suspects.
The legality of detaining civil immigration detainees at Guantanamo remains under judicial review. A federal judge in Washington, D.C., ruled in December 2025 that the practice was “impermissibly punitive” and likely unlawful, though the detention effort has not been halted.
Government and Advocacy Responses
Democratic Senator Elizabeth Warren criticized the operation as wasteful and cruel, accusing Trump and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth of misusing billions of taxpayer dollars. The American Civil Liberties Union called the use of Guantanamo for immigration detention “political theater” lacking legitimate policy justification.
The Department of Homeland Security spokeswoman Lauren Bis reiterated the administration’s hardline policy, stating that illegal entrants “could end up in Guantanamo Bay, CECOT, or a third country,” emphasizing a strict stance against illegal immigration.
Why it matters
The Guantanamo Bay immigration detention program highlights ongoing debates over immigration enforcement methods, the use of military facilities for civil detention, and fiscal responsibility. The operation’s high costs and limited detainee numbers raise questions about the practicality and legality of Guantanamo as a detention center for migrants.
As the Biden administration faces legal and policy decisions on the future of this program, the case underscores the challenges of balancing immigration enforcement with constitutional and humanitarian concerns.
Sources
This article is based on reporting and publicly available information from the following source:
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