Lawmakers slam ‘reckless’ Gitmo release as Obama speeds up transfers

The Obama administration is facing renewed accusations from Republican lawmakers of putting national security at risk following the release of 15 more Guantanamo Bay detainees — including former Usama bin Laden bodyguards and Al Qaeda bomb experts — as the Pentagon works to fulfill the president’s vow to shutter the camp by the end of his term.

“It is reckless for the administration to continue to release terrorists like these to fulfill a misguided campaign promise to empty and close Guantanamo,” Sen. Kelly Ayotte, R-N.H., said in a statement on Tuesday.

The newly announced transfer of 15 detainees – 12 Yemenis and three Afghans – to the United Arab Emirates marks the single largest release under the Obama administration.

With five months remaining in President Obama’s term, the transfer is the latest effort to shrink the prison camp’s population as part of the president’s goal to shutter the facility.

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