Obama Signs Order to Close Gitmo

By Kevin Spak,  Newser Staff
Posted Jan 22, 2009 10:51 AM CST
Obama Signs Order to Close Gitmo
President Barack Obama signs an executive order closing the prison at Guantanamo Bay, Thursday, Jan. 22, 2009, in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington.   (AP Photo/Charles Dharapak)

President Obama today signed orders to close the Guantanamo Bay detention center within a year, review the military terror trials, and ban the harshest interrogation techniques, the AP reports. “There we go,” the president said with satisfaction after signing the orders, which promise to fundamentally reshape the country's approach towards terror suspects.

The orders will also:

  • Create a task force to recommend how to handle future suspects.
  • Require all US personnel to follow the Army Field Manual while interrogating detainees.
  • Direct the Justice Department to review the case of Ali al-Marri, the only enemy combatant being held on US soil.
(More Barack Obama stories.)

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