The Guantanamo Bay timeline covers events at the controversial detention camp. The camp was established to hold suspected Taliban and Al Qaeda members following the U.S. invasion of Afghanistan in 2001. The treatment and status of Guantanamo Bay detainees has been highly disputed ever since.
1. 2001
Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld announces the decision to hold Al Qaeda and Taliban suspects at the Guantanamo Naval Base. Shortly afterward, at the end of December, U.S. Justice Department attorneys indicate in a memo that detainees held at Guantanamo would not be able to challenge their detention in U.S. courts, because Guantanamo Bay is not on American soil.2. 2002
Guantanamo Bay Detention Camp is opened at the Guantanamo Bay Naval Base in Cuba. It includes three camps: Camp Delta, Camp Iguana and Camp X-Ray ( now closed). A total of 775 detainees have been held at the camp since then. As of June, 2008, approximately 270 remain.3. 2003
The cases initiated in 2003 concluded, but instead of putting the matter of habeas corpus to rest, they served as opening shots in an ongoing debate.4. 2004
In June, the Supreme Court rules in Rasul v. Bush that the right of habeas corpus does not depend on an accused’s citizenship. In other words, even non-U.S. citizens have the right to challenge their accusers in U.S. court. In July, Combatant Status Review Tribunals (CSRTs) were established. At the same time, there are several cases pending that challenged the contention—implicit in the establishment of CSRTs—that the detainees do not have the right to due process because that are protected by the U.S. constitution.5. 2005
In 2005, and through 2006, internal wrestling between different branches of the U.S. government continues over the status and treatment of detainees. The courts generally uphold the right for detainees to appear in U.S. courts and to be covered by constitutional guarantees. At the same time, Congress circumvents these decisions by approving legislation that will put trials in the hands of the military tribunals. In December, the Detainee Treatment Act is passed by Congress. In result, pending habeas corpus cases are removed from the U.S. courts and jurisdiction given to the military tribunal system.6. 2006
Continued Wrangling between the Supreme Court and Congress progresses along the question of whether the Detainee Treatment Act can be applied retroactively. If it can, habeas corpus cases may be dismissed from court. Following battles between President Bush and Senate Republicans, Congress passed the Military Commissions Act in October.
read more:
7. 2007
The question of how to define, and therefore treat, those detained at Guantanamo Bay continues to play out, as the Omar Khadr case, which distinguishes between an “enemy combatant” and “unlawful alien enemy combatants,” reveals. In Hamdan vs. Rumsfeld, the Court rules that the US is bound by Geneva conventions and that 'enemy combatants' cannot be granted a new legal status, and that military tribunals' creation would require congressional authorization.read more:
8. 2008
The Pentagon announces plans to conduct trials against six of the men accused of conspiring in the September 11, 2001 attacks, including Khalid Sheikh Muhammad. The trial would be the first to be conducted by the military tribunal system. In June, the Supreme Court rules in Boumediene v. Bush that detainees do have the right to challenge their accusers in U.S. court. How the tribunal proceedings that have already been initiated will continue is put into question.read more: