Guantánamo Bay

Guantánamo Bay (Spanish: "Bahía de Guantánamo") is a bay located in Guantánamo Province at the south-eastern end of Cuba (coord|19|54|N|75|9|W|). It is the largest harbor on the south side of the island and is surrounded by steep hills creating an enclave cut off from its immediate hinterland.

The United States assumed territorial control over Guantánamo Bay under the 1903 Cuban-American Treaty, which granted the United States a perpetual lease of the area without the Cuban Government reacting. The current Cuban government considers the U.S. presence in Guantánamo to be illegal, arguing that the Cuban-American Treaty violates Article 52 of the 1969 Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties, which declares a treaty void if its conclusion has been procured by the threat or use of force in violation of international law. Article 4 of the same document, however, states that Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties shall not be retroactively applied to any treaties made before itself.Vienna Convention of the Law of Treaties - May 23rd, 1969 [http://untreaty.un.org/ilc/texts/instruments/english/conventions/1_1_1969.pdf United Nations Treaty Collection] , Retrieved on 11 February, 2008]

The southern portion of the bay is surrounded by the Guantanamo Bay Naval Base, established in 1898. Since 2002 the base has hosted a detainment camp for suspected militant combatants from Afghanistan and from around the world, but specifically not for captives taken in Iraq, who qualify for POW status.

In Popular Culture

The 1992 film "A Few Good Men" with Jack Nicholson as the Guantanamo base commander centers around an incident occurring on the base.

The 2003 film "Bad Boys 2" with Will Smith and Martin Lawrence After a lengthy car chase they end up at the U.S. Naval Base at Guantanamo Bay.

The 2008 film "Harold & Kumar Escape from Guantanamo Bay" is about two young men escaping Guantanamo Bay prison after being falsely accused of terrorism.

ee also

* Guantánamo Bay detention camp
* Cuba-United States relations
* Platt Amendment: Document claimed to guarantee U.S. Navy lease in Cuba
* Flora and fauna of Guantánamo Bay
* Akrotiri and Dhekelia

Wikisource links

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External links

* [http://digital.library.unt.edu/govdocs/crs/search.tkl?q=detainees&search_crit=title&search=Search&date1=Anytime&date2=Anytime&type=form Read Congressional Research Service (CRS) Reports regarding Guantánamo Detainees]
* [http://www.jtfgtmo.southcom.mil/ Joint Task Force Guantánamo] — Official website
* [https://www.cnic.navy.mil/Guantanamo/index.htm U.S. Naval Station Guantanamo Bay] — The United States' oldest overseas Naval Base
* [http://www.cubaminrex.cu/CDH/60cdh/Guantanamo/English/Guantanamo%20US%20black%20hole1.htm Guantánamo: U.S. Black Hole]
* [http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm/cmparty/070314/memi282.htm All-Party Parliamentary Group on Guantanamo Bay (APPG-GB)]
* [http://www.breakinglegalnews.com/entry/Hicks-to-Serve-9-Months-in-Terrorism-Case Hicks to Serve 9 Months in Terrorism Case]
* [http://daccessdds.un.org/doc/UNDOC/GEN/G06/112/76/PDF/G0611276.pdf?OpenElement UN Human Rights Council report on Human rights violations and the situation of detainees at Guantánamo Bay]
* [http://www.democracynow.org/2008/1/11/on_its_6th_anniversary_calls_resound On its Sixth Anniversary, Calls Resound Worldwide for Closure of Guantanamo Bay Prison ] (Democracy Now! 11 january 2008, Amy Goodman & Juan Gonzalez)
* [http://www.democracynow.org/2008/1/11/guantanamo_a_look_back_at_six Guantanamo: A Look Back at Six Years of Imprisonment, Torture and Suicide] (Democracy Now! 11 january 2008, Amy Goodman & Juan Gonzalez)
* [http://www.fljs.org/Boumediene US Army Judge Advocate on Supreme Court Guantanamo Ruling]

Maps and photos

* [http://www.cuba-pictures.com/guantanamo/index.html Cuba-Pictures.com] — Guantánamo Province photos with the view from Mirador de Malones
* [http://maps.google.com/maps?ll=19.997520,-75.142021&spn=0.163078,0.253372&t=k&hl=en Google Maps]
* [http://www.bradbeckett.com/gbay/ Photos From Guantanamo Bay, Cuba] by Brad Beckett
* [http://www.zone-interdite.net/P/base.php?laenge=-4512&breite=1194&pos=download Virtual 3D Walk-through of Camp Delta (from the Art project Zone*Interdite) ]
* [http://www.cuba.com Cuba.com]