Officials have said that the U.S. government plans to buy a state prison in rural Illinois even if Congress blocks President Obama's plan to use it for terror suspects.

The Chicago Tribune reported on Monday that Assistant U.S. Attorney General Randy Welch told members of Congress from Illinois in a letter this week that the administration has a "commitment" to purchase the unused Thomson Prison. He said the entire building will become an ordinary federal facility if it cannot be used to hold detainees now at Guantanamo Bay.

Under the administration's plan, only a small part of the facility would be used for Guantanamo detainees.

It has also been reported that Obama ran for president on a commitment to shut down the Guantanamo detention center. Congress has resisted closing it and transferring prisoners to the United States.

The report also noted that the prison is in an area of high unemployment near the Mississippi River. (With Inputs from Agencies)