10 Hellish Facts You Didn't Know About Guantanamo Bay

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• published: 05 Feb 2017
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These are some hellish facts about Guantanamo Bay of which you’ve never heard of. Here we take a look at 10 facts about this dangerous destination and some secrets about this place. Subscribe for new videos: http://goo.gl/SaufF4 10: Guantanamo Bay is Cuban land leased to the US How exactly does the US operate a prison and military camp on the lands and shores of its unfriendly communist neighbor? The answer lies way back to over 100 years ago. Following the Spanish-American War in the late 19th Century, Cuba came under United 9: It is the most expensive prison in the world It is reported that the United States government spends 800 thousand dollars a year of taxpayers' money on every single detainee in Guantanamo. This is 30 times more than what is spent on an average prisoner on US soil, which is just 25,000 dollars. The figure is also more than the cost of any college degree in the USA. The daily meal of a Guantanamo captive alone costs roughly 40 dollars a day, which is 5 times the average American. About 2000 soldiers and civilian staff are stationed at Guantanamo to maintain the facility and guard the prisoners. With the now diminishing number of detainees, the ratio of detainee to staff member is 1 8: Inmates are subject to brutal interrogations and torture methods Since the Guantanamo Bay Detention Center was first opened, torture had become endemic in the form of psychological and physical abuse. The various methods of torture used by the US military include sound and light manipulation, sleep deprivation, water boarding, humiliating acts, solitary confinement, temperature 7: Other forms of abuse Medical professionals working in Guantanamo bay were ordered to ignore ethical standards when it came to abusive interrogation methods. This included ignoring vital signs, and using medical information for interrogation purposes. In a way, the health professionals themselves became accessories to the inhumane treatment of detainees, and were in violation of World Medical Association prohibitions. Female interrogators were said to resort to sexual abuse in order to break the conservative religious 6: Fate of the detainees In all, 779 men have been detained in Guantanamo Bay since its establishment in 2002. 50 different nationalities have been present in the camp, with Afghans being the largest group, followed by Saudi Arabians, Yemenis, Pakistanis, and Algerians. According to sources from Wikileaks, minors have also been brought to the camp. About 15 detainees were under the age of 18, which is a violation of international law. The youngest, one Omar Khadr, was only 15. The oldest was Mohammed Sadiq, who was 89 when 5: Suicide attempts by prisoners is rampant There have been 6 suicide cases of Guantanamo prisoners that have been officially reported, although defense lawyers believe the real figure is higher. The US Department of Defense has changed the way they classify the suicide attempts, calling them "self injurious behaviors" instead. The first successful suicides were in 2006, when three prisoners killed themselves in a suicide pact. The suicides accounted for the first inmate deaths in the detainment 4: Hunger Strikes In Guantanamo bay, prisoners often undertake massive hunger strikes to protest against their mistreatment. With the help of medical personnel, guards often dealt with the problem by force feeding the ones on strike. Large feeding tubes were forcibly shoved into prisoners' noses and down their stomachs 3: Even memories of detainees are classified by the CIA It is normal for governments to have certain information classified, as they could pose a threat to national security. This usually involves something that exists like a document, or a piece of paper. But the CIA has taken this a step further, having made memories of prisoners at Guantanamo Bay a state secret. Until quite recently 2: Obama has tried repeatedly to close Guantanamo Bay Barack Obama has stated his intention of closing Guantanamo Bay's detention center since his first presidential campaign in 2008. On the very second day of his presidency, he signed an executive order to have the place shut down. However, efforts to close the facility and move terror suspects to prisons on US soil have been hampered repeatedly by the Republicans who dominate Congress 1: Many remaining inmates have actually been cleared for release Most Guantanamo detainees have been authorized by a presidential task force for release, or to be transferred to the US or another nation to be trialed. Despite this, they have still remained in the hellish prison camp for years due to opposition from Congress. As of now, more than half of remaining inmates are cleared for release or transfer. Part of the reason is that many of the men are from Yemen, a country that has a large al-Qaida problem, as well as harboring many other extremist militant groups. Repatriation of the prisoners might lead to their eventual release and joining into these