Closing Guantanamo would harm US national security:

The current operations of Guantanamo Bay are aiding the War on Terror, and closing the facility would harm the US' security situation. Putting an important section of a terrorist group such as Al-Qaeda in prison obviously stops the coordination and the indoctrination of younger members. This makes it harder for terrorist groups to operate effectively. The presumption is that during that time the USA will have gathered adequate intelligence and information upon which to destroy the group and the war on terror is that little bit nearer to ending. Former US Vice President Dick Cheney has stated that, intelligence-wise, "Guantanamo has been very, very valuable [in the war on terror."[1] Moreover, if released many Guantanamo detainees will likely return to terrorism.[5] Many of those that have been already released from Guantanamo done just that. The Washington Post reported in 2005 that at least 10 of the 202 detainees released from Guantanamo were later captured or killed while fighting U.S. and coalition forces in Afghanistan and Pakistan. This is a relatively high number, given the fact that only a small percentage of those that returned to terrorism would later be caught or killed. One former detainee went on to become the deputy leader of Al Qaeda’s Yemeni branch, for example.[2]  The Bush administration detained these enemy combatants because of their high likelihood to commit future crimes or their past history. The most dangerous detainees include the perpetrators of 9/11, the American embassy bombings of 1998, the USS Cole bombing of 2000, and the Bali bombings of 2002. [6] Finally, trying detainees in US courts presents a catch-22: in some cases, the evidence required to build a case for trial would compromise the same intelligence sources that make information-gathering possible [4]. During the trial of Sheik Omar Abdel Rahman (the “blind sheik”) and members of his terror cell for the 1993 bombing of the World Trade Center, prosecutors turned over a list of 200 unindicted conspirators to the defense - as the civilian criminal justice system required them to do. Within 10 days, the list made its way to downtown Khartoum, and Osama bin Laden knew that the U.S. government was on his trail. By giving this information to the defense in that terrorism case, the U.S. courts gave al Qaeda valuable information about which of its agents had been uncovered.[3] Therefore the Guantanamo Bay detention centre should not be closed as this would harm the War on Terror and US national security. [1] Reuters. “Don't close Guantanamo until terror war ends: Cheney”. Reuters. 15 December 2008. http://www.reuters.com/article/2008/12/15/us-cheney-guantanamo-idUSTRE4B... [2] Worth, Robert F. “Freed by the U.S., Saudi Becomes a Qaeda Chief”. New York Times. 22 January 2009. http://www.nytimes.com/2009/01/23/world/middleeast/23yemen.html?hp  [3] The Washington Times Editorial. “Obama and Gitmo”. The Washington Times. 12 November 2008. http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2008/nov/12/obama-and-gitmo/  [4] The Chicago Tribune. "Beyond Guantanamo." The Chicago Tribune. 22 January 2009. http://articles.chicagotribune.com/2009-01-22/news/0901210984_1_federal-court-criminal-justice-system-military-commissions  [5] Cornyn, John. "Sen. Cornyn: Closing Guantanamo Could Make America Less Safe." Texas Insider. 23 January 2009. http://www.texasinsider.org/?p=4870  [6] Joscelyn, Thomas. "Clear and Present Danger." The Weekly Standard. 1 December 2008. http://www.weeklystandard.com/Content/Public/Articles/000/000/015/845xcgce.asp?pg=1