FBI report confirms abuse of Guantanamo detainees
Regional-USA, Politics, 1/6/2007

An FBI internal report by an investigative arm of the FBI shows that those detainees held at the Guantanamo Prison system were subject to treatment that was no consistent with Bureau guidelines. The report confirms the use of Quran as a tool by interrogators as previous report had indicated, and as was denied by officials to be an official policy.

These detainees are said by the US government to be related to terrorists or terrorism, based on charges by the US government, and many are said to have been place in these US detention centers having been brought from many countries and are of different nationalities. Their treatment outside the US judicial system and treatment has been the subject of much controversy, with detainees being held without charge, or legal support, or legal recourses and judicial process to protect their rights.

The report released thru the Freedom Of Information act, shows that 9 interrogators/involved personnel out of some 532 who were surveyed and of those who responded acknowledged in a survey to have observed "aggressive mistreatment", interrogation or interview techniques by those US law enforcement or military or secrete services interrogators that were not consistent with guidelines.

One personnel reported that on August 2004, for example, saying "on a couple of occasions, I entered rooms to find a detainee chained hand and foot in a fetal position to the floor, with no chair, food, or water. Most times they had urinated or defacated on themselves, and had been left there for 18, 24 hours or more."

The report by this personnel adds "On one occasion, the air conditioning had been turned down so far and the temperature was so cold in the room, that the barefooted detainee was shaking with cold. When I asked the MP's what was going on, I was told that interrogators from the day prior had ordered this treatment, and the detainee was not to be moved."

The report added "on another occasion, the A/C had been turned off, making the temperature in the unventilated room probably well over 100 degrees. The detainee was almost unconscious on the floor, with a pile of hair next to him. He had apparently been literally pulling his own hair out throughout the night."

The report adds "On another occasion, not only was the temperature unbearably hot, but extremely loud rap music was being played in the room, and had been since the day before, with the detainee chained hand and foot in the fetal position on the tile floor."

Another FBI person who responded to the investigative survey reported that on October 4, 2002 one detainee was questioned all night by a military interrogation team, with them screaming and yelling at the detainee during the interrogation. Then he was moved that same afternoon to another location fir further interrogation, where a "Quran had been placed in front of (the detainee) and captain (name blocked), United States Marine Corp, began to interrogate the detainee. At some point during the interrogation, Captain () squatted over the Quran, which incensed (the detainee) and caused him to reach for the Quran."

That same individual continued on his report that the net day, october 5, 2002, "A German Shepherd was placed in front of (detainee number xxx) while his handler commanded the dog to growl, bark, and show his teeth."

Another personnel in a different report noted that in late October 2002, FBI special agent was observing interrogation of a a detainee by a civilian army contractor who was in charge of the Army's interrogators. The FBI agent "came into the observation room and asked SA (special agent xx) to come see something. SA (xx) then saw an unknown bearded, long-haired detainee in another interrogation room. The detainee had been gagged with duct tape that covered much of his head. SA (xx) asked Mr. (xx) whether the detainee had spit at the interrogators. Mr. (xx) laughed and stated that the detainee had been chanting the Quran and would not stop. Mr. (xx) did not answer when SA(xx) asked how the duct tape would be removed from the detainee."

The report noted that those who spoke in the survey indicated that the FBI employees were not among those who used such maltreatment of detainees, implicating other interrogators, be it from the military, other secret services, or even private civilian for-hire interrogators as is being alleged to be a practice by the US, perhaps with the intent to hire these private contracted interrogators to circumvent guidelines and/or accountability to set standards or guidelines, etc.

Previous Stories:
  US: Geneva Conventions to apply to detainees   (7/12/2006)
  US Senate hearing on detainees; an accused person has no rights   (6/16/2005)
  OIC urges Washington to show no leniency to perpetrators of Quran desecration   (6/6/2005)
  US military admits interrogators intentionally desecrated the Quran   (6/4/2005)
  Rumsfeld says detainees treatment is transparent and up to standards   (6/2/2005)
  US interim report into Quran desecration investigation   (5/27/2005)
  Amnesty International: the victims of the USA's 'war on terror'   (5/17/2005)
  Retraction of Quran desecration story, Guantanamo controversy continues   (5/17/2005)
  Retraction of Quran desecration story, Guantanamo controversy continues   (5/17/2005)

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