WASHINGTON
U.S. President Barack Obama has said he will do “everything possible" in order to close the Guantanamo Bay detention center during his last two years of in office.
On Saturday, the United States sent back home four Afghan detainees from Guantanamo.
"I'm going to be doing everything I can to close it," Obama told CNN's Sunday Morning news show, which was recorded Friday.
"It is something that continues to inspire jihadists and extremists around the world, the fact that these folks are being held," he said.
Guantanamo was opened during the administration of George W. Bush in 2002 to detain "extraordinarily dangerous persons" in the wake of the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks.
The detention center, where 132 inmates still remain, is highly criticized by human rights organizations.
Obama vowed to close the facility during his election campaign in 2008 but his plans suffered a major setback in December 2010 when Congress voted in favor of a bill that made it harder for him to move detainees out of the Cuba prison.
"It is contrary to our values and it is wildly expensive. We're spending millions for each individual there. And we have drawn down the population there significantly," Obama said.
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