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New Details About Guantanamo Torture

What did the interrogators at Guantanamo do when they thought they had "a live one"--someone with information about al Qaeda and the 9/11 attacks?: According to new details published today in the New York Times, this is what happened to Mohamed al-Kahtani, who was imprisoned at Guantánamo early in 2003 and suspected of being a future hijacker:

...his interrogation was not yielding much, so they decided in the middle of 2003 to try a new tactic. Mr. Kahtani, a Saudi, was given a tranquilizer, put in sensory deprivation garb with blackened goggles, and hustled aboard a plane that was supposedly taking him to the Middle East.

After hours in the air, the plane landed back at the United States naval base at Guantánamo Bay, Cuba, where he was not returned to the regular prison compound but put in an isolation cell in the base's brig. There, he was subjected to harsh interrogation procedures that he was encouraged to believe were being conducted by Egyptian national security operatives.

Contrary to Administration claims that detainees at Guantanamo were treated humanely,

Interviews with former intelligence officers and interrogators provided new details and confirmed earlier accounts of inmates being shackled for hours and left to soil themselves while exposed to blaring music or the insistent meowing of a cat-food commercial. In addition, some may have been forcibly given enemas as punishment.

While all the detainees were threatened with harsh tactics if they did not cooperate, about one in six were eventually subjected to those procedures, one former interrogator estimated. The interrogator said that when new interrogators arrived they were told they had great flexibility in extracting information from detainees because the Geneva Conventions did not apply at the base.

The Administration has also been deceitful with reporters allowed into Guantanamo:

Journalists who were permitted to view an interview session from behind a glass wall during General Hood's tenure were shown an interrogator and detainee sharing a milkshake and fries from the base's McDonald's and appearing to chat amiably. It became apparent to reporters comparing notes in August, however, that the tableau of the interrogator and prisoner sharing a McDonald's meal was presented to at least three sets of journalists.

Meanwhile, it doesn't appear the detainees will be released any time soon.

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    Re: New Details About Guantanamo Torture (none / 0) (#1)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Sat Jan 01, 2005 at 02:57:44 AM EST
    who the hell would be stupid enough to fall for a detainee/interrogator buddy scene? i have the script now: one's a detained terrorist suspect, the other his over the top interrogator buddy, together, they fight crime. scene 1: detainee and interrogator share a fries and milkshake detainee: damn, this here's a good milkshake interrogator: mmm-mmm detainee: naw, i ain't kidding you dawg, this here's a good milkshake, this might be the best damn milkshake i ever had in my life. interrogator: oh no, not the best in your life thing again! detainee: what man? interrogator: whenever you do something its gotta be the best in your life. whats up with that? this milkshake is the best in my life, this ramadan is the best in my life, these hookers you are showing me are the best in my life, this family i am blowing up are the best in my life! always its the best in your life with you. detainee: hey no need to trip man, i just like the milkshake is all. interrogator: okay detainee: hey those hookers were pretty good too. interrogator: laughs detainee: laughs, slaps interrogator on back interrogator: electrocutes detainee's testicles.

    Re: New Details About Guantanamo Torture (none / 0) (#2)
    by john horse on Sat Jan 01, 2005 at 06:03:36 AM EST
    What bryan is talking (if you read the NY Times article) about is that to demonstrate that the interrogation of prisoners in Guantanmo was humane, reporters were allowed to witness an interview session where the interrogator and prisoner were sharing a milkshake and fries and talking amiably. The problem was that this exact scene was witnessed by three different sets of reporters which, of course, means that it was all an obvious setup. What I find disturbing is that lack of oversight regarding these activities. Torture and democracy are incompatible. Where is the congressional investigation? Republican control of the House and Senate means that the political interests of the President are being put ahead of the interests of our country.

    Re: New Details About Guantanamo Torture (none / 0) (#3)
    by wishful on Sat Jan 01, 2005 at 07:50:18 AM EST
    It is indeed a black day when the political interest of the President are the polar opposite of the interests of our country. This is that day.

    Re: New Details About Guantanamo Torture (none / 0) (#4)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Sat Jan 01, 2005 at 08:59:28 AM EST
    The lack of control, the lack of humanity demonstrated in our treatment of suspects will come back to haunt us. A people who countenance this type of behavior have usually had a day of reckoning. The article talks about forced enemas. I suspect the military is twisting language to avoid saying anal rape with foreign objects. Oh, yeah, they may even have put panties on their heads when they were sharing milkshakes. Clearly, they never had it so good, right Jim?

    Re: New Details About Guantanamo Torture (none / 0) (#5)
    by Che's Lounge on Sat Jan 01, 2005 at 11:26:45 AM EST
    Yeah but don't tell anyone. Jesus H. Christ we are one country FUBAR.

    Re: New Details About Guantanamo Torture (none / 0) (#6)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Sat Jan 01, 2005 at 11:50:49 AM EST
    Bryan that is great, are you going to write that one up and send it in, maybe become a really big movie deal in it for you! Just wait our new camps will really be nice places for all the family. And wishful the political interests of bush is power and the ideals or non ideals of big money and one world with full enslavement for all.

    Re: New Details About Guantanamo Torture (none / 0) (#7)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Sun Jan 02, 2005 at 09:56:36 PM EST
    In some democratic jurisdictions, any and all interviews with suspects are recorded to ensure the accuracy of statements given and that these statements were not made under duress. hmmm. Do you think any lawyers for the accused will see how their clients were interviewed (all sessions)? Will there BE lawyers? Will there be trials ? Will 50+ months of psycological and physical conditioning be enough to get some bogus confessions so the CIA can save some face on this debacle ? Stay tuned.