Republican lawmakers introduce resolution to stop the Biden administration vaccinating Guantanamo Bay 'terrorists' before millions of Americans after huge backlash
Republican lawmakers introduce resolution opposing the COVID 19 vaccination of Guantanamo Bay 'terrorists' before regular Americans.
A vaccination program had been expected to begin on Monday at the maximum security detention camp at the United States Naval Station in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, which houses some of world's most infamous terrorists including the suspected 9/11 mastermind Khalid Sheikh Mohammed.
Terry Adirim, the Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Health Affairs, signed the order Wednesday, to vaccinate the detainees to make it easier for federal prosecutors to move forward with war crimes hearings during the pandemic, Fox News reported.
But the Pentagon paused the plan on Saturday to 'review force protection protocols' and confirmed that 'no Guantanamo detainees have been vaccinated.'
On Monday, GOP representatives Ashley Hinson and Elise Stefanik introduced a resolution to ensure the vaccine rollout at Guantanamo could not be resumed until the rest of the US population had received theirs.
'It is inexcusable and un-American that President Biden is prioritizing vaccines for Gitmo terrorist detainees over American citizens, including veterans, first responders, 9/11 first responders, and seniors,' Stefanik said in a statement to Fox News.
GOP congresswomen will introduce a resolution opposing the vaccination of prisoners at Guantanamo Bay before Americans
Representatives Ashley Hinson, left, and Elise Stefaniks said it was 'inexcusable' that detainees would receive the vaccine before Americans
'Every American should have access to vaccines before these heinous terrorists.'
This September will mark 20 years since the Wahhabi terrorist group Al-Qaeda claimed 2,977 innocent lives in 2001. Khalid Sheikh Mohammed has been detained at Guantanamo since 2006.
Hinson told the outlet she was motivated to speak up with the resolution when she realized KSM 'was slated to get the vaccine before Iowans,' her constituents.
'Americans need to get the vaccine before terrorists, and it's upsetting to me that that even was a question, and I think we need to make sure the administration is held accountable for this and that's what I think this resolution does,' Hinson told Fox News.
'It puts a spotlight on the thinking and the planning that was going on behind this.'
Khalid Shaikh Mohammad, who is the suspected architect behind the 9/11 attacks, is housed at Guantanamo Bay
Khalid Shaikh Mohammad has been detained at the prison in Cuba since 2006
Nearly 40 detainees remain imprisoned at Guantanamo Bay, pictured, down from more than 700 during the height of the Global War on Terror
Vaccinations at the prison were expected to begin after trials were delayed due to the pandemic
Several first repsonders to the 9/11 terrorist attacks told the New York Post that they were outraged about the Gitmo vaccination plan.
Tom Von Essen, who was the city Fire Commissioner during 9/11, told the outlet that 'it's f**king nuts' that Khalid Sheikh Mohammed would receive the vaccine before most Americans can.
'You can't make this up. The ridiculousness of what we get from our government,' he said.
Brian Sullivan, a retired special security agent with the Federal Aviation Administration, said: 'I'm incensed. It's totally outrageous.'
'I'm 75. I haven't gotten my COVID vaccine. They're going to give it Khalid Sheikh Mohammed?'
The resolution notes that more than 400,000 deaths have been attributed to COVID-19 in the United States and only 7 percent of the population has been vaccinated.
Another three detainees with links to Al Qaeda are also expected to be prioritized due to their upcoming arraignments when the vaccine is avaiable at the prison.
Encep Nurjaman, aka Hambali, Mohammed Nazir Bin Lep, and Mohammed Farik Bin Amin, all members of Southeast Asia-based extremist group known as Jemaah Islamiyah, have been in US custody since 2003.
The group is blamed for a string of bombings in Indonesia, including the 2002 bombings in Bali that killed 202 people. The three are also alleged to have links to Al Qaeda.
The vaccination effort at the facility will allow the trio to receive both doses of the vaccine ahead of their arraignment on February 22.
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