128 | Towards the Closure of Guantanamo before military commissions constitutes a clear violation of the right to a speedy trial, one of the fundamental due process guarantees. 317. It is thus reasonable to conclude that any practical plan for the closure of Guantanamo is going to have to involve the transfer of a small number of detainees to the United States for prosecution, and that sentences resulting from guilty pleas will have to be served in home or third countries. This would not only help to make the closure of Guantanamo a reality but, if those detainees are prosecuted before federal courts as recommended by the IACHR, it would also provide them with the fundamental guarantees afforded by the U.S. Constitution, ending a controversial and discredited system of military commissions outside of U.S. territory. 2. Detainees in continuing detention 318. As of March 2015, there were 56 detainees at Guantanamo who had not been designated for transfer or were not serving sentences or being tried. 383 Those detainees will be examined by the Periodic Review Board established on March 7, 2011, by President Obama. 384 This discretionary, administrative interagency process is intended “to determine whether certain individuals detained at U.S. Naval Base Guantanamo Bay, Cuba represent a continuing significant threat to the security of the United States.” 385 It applies to “(i) detainees designated for continued law of war detention; or (ii) referred for prosecution, except for those against whom charges are pending or a judgment of conviction has been entered.” 386 319. As mentioned in the previous chapter, the PRB process started in July 2013. By March 2015, fourteen full hearings and six-month file reviews had been conducted. In eight cases, the PRB concluded that continued detention was no longer necessary, in five it determined that “continued law of war detention of the detainee remains necessary to protect against a continuing significant threat to the security of the United States,” 387 and one was still pending a final determination. As of the date of preparation of this report, only two of the detainees designated for transfer via the PRB, Kuwaiti national Fouzi Al Awda and Saudi national Muhammed Murdi Issa al Zahrani had been transferred. In the case of Al Awda, the PRB recommended the “detainee’s participation in a full rehabilitation program for at least one year of in- 383 384 385 386 387 Submission of the Government of the United States to the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights with respect to the Draft Report on the Closure of Guantanamo, OEA/Ser.L/V.II.Doc. 30 January 2015, March 30, 2015, p. 4. IACHR, Expert Meeting on the situation of detainees held at the U.S. Naval Base at Guantanamo Bay, Washington DC, October 3, 2013. For more information on the PRB, visit the Periodic Review Secretariat website at www.prs.mil. Executive Order 13567 of March 7, 011, Periodic Review of Individuals Detained at Guantanamo Bay Naval Station Pursuant to the Authorization for Use of Military Force.” Available at: http://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/FR-2011-03-10/pdf/2011-5728.pdf See PRB final determinations in the cases of Abdel Malik Ahmed Abdel Wahab Al Rahabi, Salem Ahmad Hadi Bin Kanad, Muhammed Abd Al Rahman Awn Al-Shamrani, and Faez Mohammed Ahmed Al-Kandari. Available at: http://www.prs.mil/ReviewInformation/FullReviewpage.aspx Organization of American States | OAS