Alcatraz: America's most infamous prison

Donald Trump wants to re-open notorious 'escape-proof' jail for 'most ruthless and violent prisoners' in the US

Photo composite illustration of Alcatraz island, Al Capone, prison cells and watchtowers
Devil's Island: officially, no prisoner has successfully escaped from Alcatraz
(Image credit: Illustration by Stephen Kelly / Getty Images)

Donald Trump has ordered the re-opening of Alcatraz, the notorious US island prison off the coast of San Francisco that was closed down over 60 years ago.

In a post on Truth Social, the US president said he was tasking the Federal Bureau of Prisons, the Department of Justice, the FBI, and the Department of Homeland Security with substantially enlarging and rebuilding Alcatraz "to house America's most ruthless and violent offenders".

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