The Defense Department suspended a plan on Saturday to give the COVID-19 vaccine to detainees in the Guantanamo Bay prison camp. The camp is home to about 40 prisoners, including high-value inmates, such as the self-styled 9/11 architect, Khalid Sheikh Mohammed.
The Pentagon stopped the program after Republicans criticized it for putting terrorism suspects ahead of vulnerable Americans.
The plan was made public on Friday, when a Defense Department spokesman confirmed to CBS News and other media that the department would voluntarily administer COVID-19 vaccines to all detainees.
“COVID-19 vaccination will be offered to all detainees and prisoners. It will be administered on a voluntary basis and in accordance with the Department’s priority distribution plan, ”said the spokesman.
But the announcement was met with strong criticism from Republican politicians. Minority leader in the House, Kevin McCarthy, tweeted on Saturday: “President Biden told us he would have a plan to defeat the virus on day 1. He just never told us that it would be to give the vaccine to terrorists before most Americans “.
New York representative Elise Stefanik tweeted that the plan was “unforgivable and not American”.
On Saturday afternoon, the Pentagon changed course. “No Guantanamo detainees have been vaccinated,” said Pentagon spokesman John Kirby. “We are interrupting the plan to move forward, while reviewing the force protection protocols. We remain committed to our obligations to keep our troops safe. ”
The CDC vaccination guidelines say that both correctional staff and incarcerated people are at an increased risk of contracting the disease. The CDC recommends inoculating officials and detainees at the same time, to help control outbreaks in prisons and neighboring communities.
The vaccination plan was authorized through a January 27 memorandum signed by Terry Adirim, the deputy assistant secretary of defense for health matters at the Department of Defense.
Guantanamo Bay was opened in 2002 under former President George W. Bush to house so-called “high-value” detainees. After former President Barack Obama tried and failed in his eight years in office to close the prison camp, former President Donald Trump pledged to keep the facility open.
Five 9/11 suspects are still awaiting trial at the military base and the schedule has been delayed because of the COVID-19 pandemic.