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The Biden administration s intention to vaccinate prisoners at Guantanamo Bay against COVID-19 sparked immediate backlash.
But infectious diseases are an acute threat to prison populations and the people around them, so vaccinating them is good policy.
On January 27, the Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Health Affairs Terry Adirim announced that the Pentagon would vaccinate some 40 detainees at GITMO (Guantanamo Naval Station). Adirim, who was appointed by Biden on Inauguration Day, has already drawn sharp criticism for the decision.
(AP Photo/Brennan Linsley, File)
I reported on the Biden administration’s plan to give Guantanamo Bay detainees, including those allegedly behind 9/11 and the reported “mastermind” Khalid Sheikh Muhammed, the Wuhan coronavirus vaccine before most Americans, starting as early as this week. Most Americans are not expected to get it until later in the spring or even the beginning of summer.
The order authorizing this was signed by Biden political appointee Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Health Affairs Terry Adirim.
Americans, particularly first responders and those who came to Ground Zero to help out after the attacks, were infuriated that Gitmo detainees were slated higher on the list.
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On January 27th, the Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Health Affairs Terry Adirim announced that the Pentagon would vaccinate some 40 detainees at GITMO (Guantanamo Naval Station). Adirim, who was appointed by Biden on Inauguration day, has already drawn sharp criticism for the decision.
A kind of firestorm erupted over whether these Islamist terrorist detainees should receive a vaccine before the average American. The controversy then spread to several U.S. states which also planned to vaccinate prisoners ahead of most civilians.
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, speaking at The Villages, a large community for seniors in central Florida, was also against vaccinating prisoners before ordinary citizens. “Some of these states are vaccinating prisoners instead of seniors,” he said. “They’re vaccinating drug addicts instead of seniors.”
Plan to vaccinate Guantanamo Bay detainees against Covid-19 has been paused
January 30, 2021 3:38 PM CNN
John Moore/Getty Images South America/Getty Images
(CNN) An earlier plan to give Guantanamo Bay detainees the Covid-19 vaccine has been paused as of Saturday, according to a US Pentagon official.
Pentagon press secretary John Kirby said in a Saturday afternoon tweet that no Guantanamo Bay detainees have been given a Covid-19 vaccine and announced that the Department of Defense is “pausing the plan to move forward, as we review force protection protocols.”
CNN had previously reported that US Armed Forces and current US-held detainees at Guantanamo Bay were granted authorization to receive the Covid-19 vaccine on January 27 in a memo from Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Health Affairs Terry Adirim.
On Friday, the Pentagon signed a memo approving COVID-19 vaccination efforts at Guantanamo Bay
Al Qaeda terrorists including 9/11 mastermind Khalid Sheikh Mohammed are among the detainees at Gitmo
The terrorists were set to receive their first dose of the in-demand vaccines as early as next Monday
The move caused widespread outrage, with 9/11 first responders saying the government was putting terrorists ahead of ordinary US citizens
Tom Von Essen, who was city Fire Commissioner during 9/11, said: You can t make this up. The ridiculousness of what we get from our government
On Saturday, the Pentagon announced they were pausing the plan in light of the backlash