Many of the prisoners are being held at remote prisons established by former King Hassan II to torture political prisoners. Many of these prisons are in located high in the Atlas Mountains and are so remote, they can only be easily reached by helicopter.

The deal with Morocco was reached as a result of the close relations between Morocco's King Mohammed VI and former Secretary of State and UN Special Envoy for Western Sahara James Baker, Baker's Special Envoy assistant John Bolton, and former US ambassador to Morocco Margaret Tutwiler. Western Sahara is illegally occupied by Morocco but the Bush administration supports the continued Moroccan occupation of the oil and mineral rich territory. In return, Morocco has supported the holding of "Al Qaeda" suspects, interrogations by its security services, and close liaison with Israeli intelligence and military personnel.