[Congressional Bills 112th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 944 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

112th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                 S. 944

  To reaffirm the authority of the Department of Defense to maintain 
 United States Naval Station, Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, as a location for 
the detention of unprivileged enemy belligerents held by the Department 
                  of Defense, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                              May 11, 2011

Ms. Ayotte (for herself, Mr. Graham, Mr. Lieberman, Mr. Chambliss, Mr. 
    Brown of Massachusetts, Mr. Rubio, and Mr. Webb) introduced the 
 following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on 
                             Armed Services

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
  To reaffirm the authority of the Department of Defense to maintain 
 United States Naval Station, Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, as a location for 
the detention of unprivileged enemy belligerents held by the Department 
                  of Defense, and for other purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Detaining Terrorists to Secure 
America Act of 2011''

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    Congress makes the following finding:
            (1) The United States and its international partners are in 
        an armed conflict with violent Islamist extremist groups, 
        including al Qaeda and associated terrorist organizations, that 
        are committed to killing Americans and our allies.
            (2) In the last 2 years, terrorists have repeatedly 
        attempted to kill Americans both here at home and abroad, 
        including the following attacks, plots, or alleged plots and 
        attacks:
                    (A) A September 2009 plot by Najibullah Zazi--who 
                received training from al Qaeda in Pakistan--to conduct 
                a suicide bomb attack on the New York, New York, subway 
                system.
                    (B) A November 2009 attack by Nidal Malik Hasan at 
                Fort Hood, Texas, that killed 13 people and wounded 32.
                    (C) A Christmas Day 2009 attempt by Umar Farouk 
                Abdulmutallab to detonate a bomb sewn into his 
                underwear on an international flight to Detroit, 
                Michigan.
                    (D) A May 2010 attempt by Faisal Shahzad to bomb 
                Times Square in New York, New York, on a crowded 
                Saturday evening, an attack that was unsuccessful only 
                because the car bomb failed to detonate.
                    (E) An October 2010 attempt by terrorists in Yemen 
                to send, via commercial cargo flights, 2 packages of 
                explosives to Jewish centers in Chicago, Illinois.
                    (F) A February 2011 plot by Khaled Aldawsari, a 
                Saudi-born student, to manufacture explosives and 
                potentially attack New York, New York, the Dallas, 
                Texas, home of former President George W. Bush, as well 
                as hydroelectric dams, nuclear power plants, and a 
                nightclub.
            (3) Since the September 11, 2001, attacks on our Nation, 
        the United States and allied forces have captured thousands of 
        individuals fighting for or supporting al Qaeda and associated 
        terrorist organizations that do not abide by the law of war, 
        including detainees at United States Naval Station, Guantanamo 
        Bay, Cuba, who served as planners of those attacks, trainers of 
        terrorists, financiers of terrorists, bomb makers, bodyguards 
        for Osama bin Laden, recruiters of terrorists, and facilitators 
        of terrorism.
            (4) Many of the detainees at United States Naval Station, 
        Guantanamo Bay provided valuable intelligence that gave the 
        United States insight into al Qaeda and its methods, prevented 
        terrorist attacks, and saved lives.
            (5) Intelligence obtained from detainees at United States 
        Naval Station, Guantanamo Bay was critical to eventually 
        identifying the location of Osama bin Laden.
            (6) In a February 17, 2011, hearing of the Committee on 
        Armed Services of the Senate, the Secretary of Defense 
        confirmed that approximately 25 percent of detainees released 
        from the detention facility at United States Naval Station, 
        Guantanamo Bay are confirmed to have reengaged in hostilities 
        or are suspected of having reengaged in hostilities against the 
        United States or our allies.
            (7) Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula, an organization that 
        includes former detainees at United States Naval Station, 
        Guantanamo Bay among its leadership and ranks, has claimed 
        responsibility for several of the recent plots and attacks 
        against the United States.
            (8) Detention according to the law of war is a matter of 
        national security and military necessity and has long been 
        recognized as legitimate under international law.
            (9) Detaining unprivileged enemy belligerents prevents them 
        from returning to the battlefield to attack United States and 
        allied military personnel and engaging in future terrorist 
        attacks against innocent civilians.
            (10) The Joint Task Force-Guantanamo provides for the 
        humane, legal, and transparent care and custody of detainees at 
        United States Naval Station, Guantanamo Bay, notwithstanding 
        regular assaults on the guard force by some detainees.
            (11) The International Committee of the Red Cross visits 
        detainees at United States Naval Station, Guantanamo Bay on a 
        quarterly basis.
            (12) The detention facility at United States Naval Station, 
        Guantanamo Bay benefits from robust oversight by Congress.

SEC. 3. REAFFIRMATION OF AUTHORITY TO MAINTAIN UNITED STATES NAVAL 
              STATION, GUANTANAMO BAY, CUBA, AS A LOCATION FOR THE 
              DETENTION OF UNPRIVILEGED ENEMY BELLIGERENTS HELD BY THE 
              DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE.

    (a) Reaffirmation of Authority as Location for Detention of 
Unprivileged Enemy Belligerents.--United States Naval Station, 
Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, is and shall be a location for the detention of 
individuals in the custody or under the control of the Department of 
Defense who have engaged in, or supported, hostilities against the 
United States or its coalition partners on behalf of al Qaeda, the 
Taliban, or an affiliated group to which the Authorization for Use of 
Military Force (Public Law 107-40) applies.
    (b) Maintenance as an Operational Facility for Detention.--The 
Secretary of Defense shall take appropriate actions to maintain United 
States Naval Station, Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, as an open and operating 
facility for the detention of current and future individuals as 
described in subsection (a).
    (c) Permanent Extension of Certain Limitations Relating to 
Detainees and Detention Facilities.--
            (1) Limitation on transfer of detainees to foreign 
        entities.--Section 1033(a)(1) of the Ike Skelton National 
        Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2011 (Public Law 111-
        383; 124 Stat. 4351) is amended by striking ``during the one-
        year period'' and all that follows through ``by this Act'' and 
        inserting ``the Secretary of Defense may not use any amounts 
        authorized to be appropriated''.
            (2) Prohibition on construction of detention facilities in 
        united states.--Section 1034(a) of such Act (124 Stat. 4353) is 
        amended by striking ``None of the funds authorized to be 
        appropriated by this Act'' and inserting ``No funds authorized 
        to be appropriated or otherwise made available to the 
        Department of Defense, or to or for any other department or 
        agency of the United States Government,''.
    (d) Supersedure of Executive Order.--Sections 3, 4(c)(2), 4(c)(3), 
4(c)(5), and 7 of Executive Order No. 13492, dated January 22, 2009, 
shall have no further force or effect.
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