More than 100 detainees at the detention center at U.S. Naval Base Guantanamo Bay, in Cuba, are on hunger strike. (AP) (REUTERS)
WASHINGTON – The Pentagon wants more than $450 million for maintaining and upgrading the Guantanamo Bay prison that President Barack Obama wants to close.
New details on the administration's budget request for next year and other expenses emerged on Tuesday. The cost of the facility that houses 166 prisoners indefinitely includes $200 million for military construction work that could stretch over a decade.
The request also includes $40 million for a fiber optic cable and millions more for military commissions at the facility in Cuba.
Since he took office in January 2009, Obama has pushed to close the prison but has faced opposition from Republicans and some Democrats in Congress. Obama is expected to renew his plea in a speech on counterterrorism on Thursday.
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