Obama
vows 'do everything I can' to close Guantanamo: CNN interview
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[December 22, 2014]
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S.
president Barack Obama said in a TV interview set for broadcast on
Sunday that he will do "everything I can" to close the U.S. military
prison at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, after four Afghan detainees held there
were sent home.
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Obama promised to shut the internationally condemned prison when
he took office nearly six years ago, saying it was damaging
America's image around the world. But he has been unable to do so,
partly because of obstacles posed by the U.S. Congress.
"I'm going to be doing everything I can to close it," Obama said on
CNN's "State of the Union with Candy Crowley," program in an
interview taped on Friday.
"It is something that continues to inspire jihadists and extremists
around the world, the fact that these folks are being held," he
said.
"It is contrary to our values and it is wildly expensive. We're
spending millions for each individual there. And we have drawn down
the population there significantly," he added.
In the latest step in the gradual push to close the prison, four
Afghans held for over a decade at Guantanamo have been sent home,
the Pentagon said on Saturday.
(Reporting By Steve Holland)
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