To avoid a new Guantanamo, use the past to shape the future

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This past month, the Biden administration took several concrete steps toward closing the post-9/11 chapter of the War on Terror. The withdrawal of troops from Afghanistan is nearly complete. The military withdrawal from Iraq is now scheduled for the end of the year. Lawmakers are poised to sunset the statutory authorization for the War on Terror, the 2001 Authorization for Military Force. And last week, the first Guantanamo prisoner in three years was released to his home country of Morocco. Ten other detainees have been approved for release, meaning that the detention facility that became an ominous symbol of the War on Terror may soon house only twenty-nine aging men. 

As the Biden administration takes steps to end the War on Terror, policymakers need to reflect on how we might have done things differently. It is time for hindsight. And central to any discussion of lessons learned for future conflicts is how to avoid another Guantanamo Bay. Guantanamo has been a disaster by every measure. Learning five lessons can prevent it from happening again.