关塔那摩最大规模转移囚犯

AS IT IS 2016-08-17 US Announces Single Largest Transfer of Guantanamo Inmates 关塔那摩最大规模转移囚犯

Fifteen people are no longer prisoners at the United States military’s prison at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.

Twelve detainees from Yemen and three Afghans were released to the government of the United Arab Emirates. The release was announced on August 15.

It was the largest transfer of detainees from the prison during the nearly eight- year presidency¹ of Barack Obama.

The move comes during a renewed push to reduce the number of people jailed at Guantanamo. The U.S. Department of Defense² said on Monday that 61 detainees are still held there. The prison has mostly been used to hold those captured by the government’s war on terrorism.

President Obama is facing his own deadline to close the prison. Obama will leave office in January 2017. He promised to close Guantanamo when he was first elected in 2008.

The president faces opposition³ about the future of the prison from many members of Congress.

A top official with the rights group Amnesty International believes Guantanamo will remain open.

"…[T]here is a significant possibility this is going to remain open as a permanent offshore⁴ prison to hold people, practically until they die," said Naureen Shah, Amnesty’s U.S. director for security and human rights.

One of the detainees who just left Guantanamo spent more than 13 years there. He was identified as an Afghan national named Obaidullah. He had been accused of hiding and storing mines to be used against U.S. forces in Afghanistan.

Words in This Story

deadline – n. a date or time when something must be finished; time limit

transfer – n. an act of moving someone or something from one place to another

offshore – adv. at a distance from the coast; outside the country

1 presidency   

n.总统(校长，总经理)的职位(任期)

参考例句：

• Roosevelt was elected four times to the presidency of the United States.罗斯福连续当选四届美国总统。
• Two candidates are emerging as contestants for the presidency.两位候选人最终成为总统职位竞争者。

2 defense   

n.防御，保卫；[pl.]防务工事；辩护，答辩

参考例句：

• The accused has the right to defense.被告人有权获得辩护。
• The war has impacted the area with military and defense workers.战争使那个地区挤满了军队和防御工程人员。

3 opposition   

n.反对，敌对

参考例句：

• The party leader is facing opposition in his own backyard.该党领袖在自己的党內遇到了反对。
• The police tried to break down the prisoner's opposition.警察设法制住了那个囚犯的反抗。

4 offshore   

adj.海面的，吹向海面的；adv.向海面

参考例句：

• A big program of oil exploration has begun offshore.一个大规模的石油勘探计划正在近海展开。
• A gentle current carried them slowly offshore.和缓的潮流慢慢地把他们带离了海岸。