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Pres. Trump says freed Gitmo prisoners 'returned to battlefield'

Published  March 7, 2017 6:48am CST
Barack Obama
Associated Press

WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump says "122 vicious prisoners" released by the Obama administration from Guantanamo Bay, Cuba "have returned to the battlefield."

Trump didn't cite where he got the statistic in his Tuesday tweet.



On Monday, U.S. airstrikes against an al-Qaida-linked group in Yemen killed a former detainee who was released from the prison in 2009 despite earlier recommendations that he remain in custody because he was considered a "high threat" to America and its allies.

At its peak, the Guantanamo prison held nearly 680 detainees. It was down to 242 when President Barack Obama took office in 2009 and he got that number down to just a few dozen. Obama said the prison was a waste of money and a recruiting tool for extremists.

The guard tower at the entrance to Camps V and VI inside Guantanamo Bay. (Credit: Oliver Janney/CNN)