Obama orders Guantanamo closure
- 00:01:13
- ITN
Obama orders Guantanamo closure
Barack Obama has ordered that the controversial Guantanamo prison centre be closed within one year. The US president has also put a halt to harsh interrogation of terrorism suspects at the Cuban base. The camp, opened under the Bush administration and where 250 inmates have spent years without trial, is widely felt to have damaged America's moral standing in the world. The executive order to shut the prison, which was established after the September 11, 2001, attacks amid Mr Bush's "war on terror", fulfils a promise Mr Obama made during his campaign. At a signing ceremony in the Oval Office, he said: "The message that we are sending around the world is that the United States intends to prosecute the ongoing struggle against violence and terrorism and we are going to do so vigilantly. "We are going to do so effectively and we are going to do so in a manner that is consistent with our values and our ideals," he said. The US wants to try about 80 of the prisoners on terrorism charges. It has cleared 50 other detainees for release but cannot return them to their home countries because of the risk they could be tortured or persecuted there. Last month, Portugal's foreign minister urged other Europeans to take in Guantanamo prisoners, saying such a move could make it easier for Mr Obama to close the prison. Switzerland and Ireland have said they are open to taking in prisoners. Meanwhile, Mr Obama has had a busy start to White House life, including being sworn in again for a second time. He had to repeat his inaugural oath after Chief Justice John Roberts fluffed his lines in Tuesday's original ceremony and Mr Obama followed suit. Mr Roberts, who first administered the oath on the steps of the US Capitol, administered it again to the president 24 hours later, in front of reporters and a few members of the president's staff. Mr Roberts had accidentally switched the word order when he administered the oath on Tuesday, saying "I will execute the office of president to the United States faithfully," instead of, "I will faithfully execute the office of president of the United States." Mr Obama, who briefly interrupted the chief justice by starting the oath before Mr Roberts finished reciting the first part, then repeated back the line as Mr Roberts had said it.
ITN | January 22, 2009
