Protests mark 6th anniversary of Gitmo

On the sixth anniversary of the Guantanamo Bay, protesters took to the street worldwide, with over 80 people arrested in the US capital.

On Friday, around 200 demonstrators in prisoner-style orange jumpsuit marched from Congress in Washington DC to the nearby Supreme Court building, calling for the shutdown of the prison where the US military put terrorist suspects in detention.

In addition, a petition signed by 1,100 parliamentarians from across the world, and 100,000 other signatures from US citizens, was to be handed in to the White House.

People also staged protests in the Philippines, Sweden, Paraguay, Bahrain, Ireland, the United Kingdom and Greece.

The US Supreme Court is to rule in the coming months on whether prisoners at Guantanamo Bay can challenge their detention in civilian courts. Currently they face special military tribunals at the base, outside the US soil.

According to the U.S. Department of Defense, despite hundreds who have been released from Guantanamo to various countries, there are still 275 remaining in the prison.

SG/GM