Michelle Shephard/Reuters
The Pentagon announced Monday that 15 detainees at the prison at Guantanamo Bay have been sent to the United Arab Emirates as part of the Obama administration’s plans to close the facility. Twelve of the prisoners transferred out are from Yemen, and three are from Afghanistan, an official told the Associated Press. “The United States is grateful to the government of the United Arab Emirates for its humanitarian gesture and willingness to support ongoing U.S. efforts to close” the facility at the U.S. naval base, a statement from the Pentagon said. The transfer is the largest to take place while President Barack Obama is in office, giving hope that he may keep his promise and close down the facility for good. A total of 61 inmates remain there now, and all are slated to be transferred. When Obama took office, there were 242 inmates at the facility.