Constructed in stages starting in 2002, the Guantánamo Bay detention camp (often called Gitmo, which is also a name for the naval base) was used to house Muslim militants and suspected terrorists captured by U.S. forces in Afghanistan, Iraq, and elsewhere (see also Iraq War).

When did the US acquire Guantanamo?

The United States first seized Guantánamo Bay and established a naval base there in 1898 during the Spanish–American War in the Battle of Guantánamo Bay. In 1903, the United States and Cuba signed a lease granting the United States permission to use the land as a coaling and naval station.

Are there still prisoners in Guantanamo?

39 detainees remain at Guantanamo Bay. ... The Washington Post maintains a list of the prisoners known or suspected to have been held in Guantánamo Bay. On March 3, 2006 the DoD partially complied with a court order to release the names of the remaining Guantánamo detainees.