January 15, 1993: The commencement of Operation Able Manner saw U.S. Coast Guard and naval ships patrolling the Windward Passage, with the mission of interdicting Haitian migrants trying to make their way from Haiti to Cuba by boat. The Operation lasted until November 1994: in that time over 25,000 Haitians were interdicted. January 12, 2014:…

December 05, 2013: The Obama administration sends two more GTMO detainees to Algeria. Belkacem Bensayah and Djamel Ameziane follow two other detainees transferred to Algeria this year. Both of the newly transferred men have expressed fear of facing persecution in Algeria. December 12, 1972: A group of Haitian ‘boat people’ arrive in South Florida on…

October 4, 2013: The Obama administration prepares to release another detainee from GTMO – the third in about as many months – after dropping its legal opposition to the release of Ibrahim Idris. Diagnosed as mentally ill soon after arriving at GTMO in 2002, Idris is not considered a threat, and will likely to be…

September 16, 2013: The trial of five men alleged of aiding the September 11 attacks re-opens at GTMO. Officially known as United States v. Khalid Shaikh Mohammad, Walid Muhammad Salih Mubarak Bin ‘Attash, Ramzi Binalshibh, Ali Abdul Aziz Ali, and Mustafa Ahmed Adam al Hawsawi, this military commission has proceeded spasmodically since charges were first…

August 10 & 12, 2013: Bestselling author John Grisham condemns the ongoing incarceration of detainees that have been cleared for release from Guantánamo. In an op-ed published by The New York Times and The Guardian, Grisham highlights the story of Nabil Hadjarab, claiming that Hadjarab’s detention has been one of many “mistakes” in the war…

July 26, 2013: The U.S. Department of Defense informs Congress that it intends to repatriate two detainees from Guantánamo to Algeria. This will be the first release of detainees in over a year, and the first repatriation in three years. July 30, 1994: The number of Cuban balseros (rafters) rescued from the sea increases dramatically.…

July 18, 2013: A federal appeals court reinstated the legal use of genital searches as a security precaution at GTMO. SOUTHCOM commander Marine General John Kelly explained the necessity of such searches by referring to the death of detainee Adnan Latif, who allegedly committed suicide after secretly stockpiling a lethal dose of medication. July 20,…

July 8, 2013: A federal judge called on President Obama to address force-feeding at Guantánamo in the face of mounting allegations that the practice violates international norms, as well as legal bids from detainees seeking to block the practice during the Ramadan holiday.     July 8, 1994: By noon Coast Guard cutters delivered 862 Haitians to…

June 18, 2013: The Obama administration released for the first time the names of 46 men it wants to detain indefinitely at Guantánamo without charge or trial.   June 21, 1993: Guantánamo’s Camp Bulkeley, an “HIV prison camp” according to a Federal judge, closes as the last Haitian refugees detained there arrive for resettlement in…

June 12, 2013: A group of leading physicians published a charge to doctors working at Guantánamo to refuse participation in the U.S. military’s force-feeding program. In addition to arguing that the practice “unambiguously violates medical ethics,” they also labeled the detention center a “medical ethics free zone.” June 12, 1993: Haitian refugees being held at…