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bismi-lLahi-rRahmani-rRahiem In the Name of Allah, the Compassionate, the Merciful === News Update === FBI files detail Guantánamo torture tactics Mark Tran Wednesday January 3, 2007 <http://www.guardian.co.uk/>Guardian Unlimited A detainee's arm hangs outside his cell at Camp Delta in Guanta A detainee's arm hangs outside his cell at Camp Delta in Guantanamo Bay. Photograph: Mike Brown/EPA Captives at Guantánamo Bay were chained hand and foot in a fetal position to the floor for 18 hours or more, urinating and defecating on themselves, an FBI report has revealed. The accounts of mistreatment were contained in FBI documents <http://foia.fbi.gov/guantanamo/detainees.pdf>released yesterday (pdf) as part of a lawsuit involving the American Civil Liberties Union, a civil liberties group. In the 2004 inquiry, the FBI asked nearly 500 employees who had served at Guantánamo Bay to report possible mistreatment by law enforcement or military personnel. Twenty-six incidents were reported, some of which had emerged in earlier document releases. Besides being shackled to the floor, detainees were subjected to extremes of temperature. One witness said he saw a barefoot detainee shaking with cold because the air conditioning had bought the temperature close to freezing. On another occasion, the air conditioning was off in an unventilated room, making the temperature over 38C (100F) and a detainee lay almost unconscious on the floor with a pile of hair next to him. He had apparently been pulling out his hair throughout the night. In October 2002, one interrogator squatted over a copy of the Qur'an during intensive questioning of a Muslim prisoner, who was "incensed" by the tactic, according to an FBI agent. On another occasion, an agent was asked by a "civilian contractor" to come and see something. "There was an unknown bearded longhaired d (detainee) gagged w/duct tape that had covered much of his head," the FBI document said. When the FBI officer asked if the detainee had spit at interrogators, the "contractor laughingly replied that d had been chanting the Qur'an non-stop. No answer how they planned to remove the duct tape," the report said. After an erroneous report of Qur'an abuse prompted deadly protests overseas in 2005, the US military conducted an investigation that confirmed five incidents of intentional and unintentional mishandling of the book at the detention facility. It acknowledged that soldiers and interrogators had kicked the Qur'an, had stood on it and, in one case, had inadvertently sprayed urine on a copy. An FBI agent called W also heard that female interrogators would sometimes wet their hands and touch detainees' faces in order to disrupt their prayers. Such actions would make some Muslims consider themselves unclean so they would stop praying. The detention of terrorist suspects at Guantánamo Bay has been strongly criticised by human rights groups. In a rebuff for the Bush administration, the US supreme court last year rejected its claims that detainees at the facility were not entitled to the protection under the Geneva convention. The department of defence consequently issued a memo stating that prisoners would in the future be entitled to such protection. As of November 2006, out of 775 detainees who have been brought to Guantánamo, approximately 340 had been released, leaving 435 detainees. Of those 435, 110 have been labelled as ready for release. Of the other 325, only about 70 will face trial by military commissions, criminal courts run by the US armed forces. That leaves about 250 who may be held indefinitely. source: http://www.guardian.co.uk/guantanamo/story/0,,1981955,00.html === FBI report details Guantanamo torture An FBI report details harsh conditions and techniques witnessed An FBI report details harsh conditions and techniques witnessed by agents at Guantanamo Bay. (Reuters) An internal FBI report appears to contradict assurances by US President George W Bush that prisoners are treated humanely at Guantanamo Bay. Released under Freedom of Information laws, the report details the harsh conditions and techniques witnessed by some FBI employees at the detention centre. Several staff reportedly witnessed detainees with their hands and feet chained to the floor in cells without a chair, food or water. In another reported incident, a detainee had his head wrapped in sticky tape for chanting verses from the Koran. There are also reports of detainees being kept awake days on end with strobe lighting and loud music. The FBI says none of its agents have been involved in the abuse. The documents were released in response to a request by the American Civil Liberties Union. President Bush has repeatedly stated that America does not condone torture and treats prisoners humanely. Enemy combatants The US Government is holding hundreds of what it describes as enemy combatants at Guantanamo Bay, including Australian David Hicks. Mr Hicks, originally from Adelaide, has been held at Guantanamo Bay since 2002. The convert to Islam was captured in Afghanistan where he allegedly fought alongside the ruling Taliban against US-led forces who invaded after the terrorist attacks on the United States on September 11, 2001. The US charged him with conspiracy, attempted murder by an unprivileged belligerent and aiding the enemy. But the charges were dropped earlier this year, after the US Supreme Court ruled it was unlawful for the US military commission to try Mr Hicks. - BBC/ABC source: http://www.abc.net.au/news/newsitems/200701/s1821091.htm === FBI cites cruelty to detainees Associated Press WASHINGTON The FBI says its employees witnessed more than two dozen cases of military officials and civilian contractors possibly mistreating detainees at the Guantanamo Bay military base. Documents released Tuesday described a contractor who covered much of a detainees head in duct tape for chanting the Koran, a female prison guard who allegedly handled a detainees genitals and wiped menstrual blood on his face, and contractors who left a detainee in a sweltering, unventilated room until he pulled out his own hair and nearly passed out. The documents were released to the American Civil Liberties Union, which is suing former Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld on behalf of former military detainees who say they were abused. Many of the incidents have already been reported and are summarized in the lawsuit. The records were gathered as part of an internal FBI survey in 2004. The agency asked 493 employees whether they witnessed aggressive treatment that was not consistent with the FBIs policies. The bureau received 26 affirmative responses. The agencys reports did not say whether any laws were broken. They said nothing employees observed rose to the level of abuse seen at the Abu Ghraib prison in Iraq. FBI spokesman Richard Kolko said all the information in the reports were passed on to the Pentagons inspector general. source: http://www.fortwayne.com/mld/journalgazette/news/nation/16373167.htm === -muslim voice- ______________________________________ BECAUSE YOU HAVE THE RIGHT TO KNOW [Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
