The US government is planning to buy a prison in the state of Illinois to incarcerate some of the terrorist suspects being held at the Guantánamo Bay naval base in Cuba.

Several dozen detainees will be transferred to the Thomson Correctional Center, a high security facility in the countryside. The White House decision is seen as a major step towards closing the Guantánamo Bay camp, where around 215 detainees are still being held.

When he came into office, President Barack Obama promised that he would close Guantánamo Bay within one year. He is now unlikely to reach that target, partly because other countries are reluctant to take any of the prisoners in. Even though there is no evidence against many of the suspects, they are still viewed as too dangerous to release.