Another story for Congress and the American public to ignore
From AP:
Iraqi Died While Hung From Wrists
SAN DIEGO (AP) - An Iraqi whose corpse was photographed with grinning U.S. soldiers at Abu Ghraib died under CIA interrogation while in a position condemned by human rights groups as torture - suspended by his wrists, with his hands cuffed behind his back, according to reports reviewed by The Associated Press.
The death of the prisoner, Manadel al-Jamadi, became known last year when the Abu Ghraib prison scandal broke. The U.S. military said back then that the death had been ruled a homicide. But the exact circumstances under which the man died were not disclosed at the time.
The prisoner died in a position known as "Palestinian hanging," the documents reviewed by The AP show. It is unclear whether that position was approved by the Bush administration for use in CIA interrogations.
The spy agency, which faces congressional scrutiny over its detention and interrogation of terror suspects at the Baghdad prison and elsewhere, declined to comment for this story, as did the Justice Department.
Al-Jamadi was one of the CIA's "ghost" detainees at Abu Ghraib - prisoners being held secretly by the agency.
His death in November 2003 became public with the release of photos of Abu Ghraib guards giving a thumbs-up over his bruised and puffy-faced corpse, which had been packed in ice. One of those guards was Pvt. Charles Graner, who last month received 10 years in a military prison for abusing detainees.
Al-Jamadi died in a prison shower room during about a half-hour of questioning, before interrogators could extract any information, according to the documents, which consist of statements from Army prison guards to investigators with the military and the CIA's Inspector General's office.
One Army guard, Sgt. Jeffery Frost, said the prisoner's arms were stretched behind him in a way he had never before seen. Frost told investigators he was surprised al-Jamadi's arms "didn't pop out of their sockets," according to a summary of his interview.
Frost and other guards had been summoned to reposition al-Jamadi, who an interrogator said was not cooperating. As the guards released the shackles and lowered al-Jamadi, blood gushed from his mouth "as if a faucet had been turned on," according to the interview summary.
The military pathologist who ruled the case a homicide found several broken ribs and concluded al-Jamadi died from pressure to the chest and difficulty breathing.
Dr. Michael Baden, a distinguished civilian pathologist who reviewed the autopsy for a defense attorney in the case, agreed in an interview that the position in which al-Jamadi was suspended could have contributed to his death.
Dr. Vincent Iacopino, director of research for Physicians for Human Rights, called the hyper-extension of the arms behind the back "clear and simple torture." The European Court of Human Rights found Turkey guilty of torture in 1996 in a case of Palestinian hanging - a technique Iacopino said is used worldwide but named for its alleged use by Israel in the Palestinian territories.
The Washington Post reported last year that after the Abu Ghraib scandal broke, the CIA suspended the use of its "enhanced interrogation techniques," including stress positions, because of fears that the agency could be accused of unsanctioned and illegal activity. The newspaper said the White House had approved the tactics.
Navy SEALs apprehended al-Jamadi as a suspect in the Oct. 27, 2003, bombing of Red Cross offices in Baghdad that killed 12 people. His alleged role in the bombing is unclear. According to court documents and testimony, the SEALs punched, kicked and struck al-Jamadi with their rifles before handing him over to the CIA early on Nov. 4. By 7 a.m., al-Jamadi was dead.
Navy prosecutors in San Diego have charged nine SEALs and one sailor with abusing al-Jamadi and others. All but two lieutenants have received nonjudicial punishment; one lieutenant is scheduled for court-martial in March, the other is awaiting a hearing before the Navy's top SEAL.
The statements from five of Abu Ghraib's Army guards were shown to The AP by an attorney for one of the SEALs, who said they offered a more balanced picture of what happened. The lawyer asked not to be identified, saying he feared repercussions for his client.
According to the statements:
Al-Jamadi was brought naked below the waist to the prison with a CIA interrogator and translator. A green plastic bag covered his head, and plastic cuffs tightly bound his wrists. Guards dressed al-Jamadi in an orange jumpsuit, slapped on metal handcuffs and escorted him to the shower room, a common CIA interrogation spot.
There, the interrogator instructed guards to attach shackles from the prisoner's handcuffs to a barred window. That would let al-Jamadi stand without pain, but if he tried to lower himself, his arms would be stretched above and behind him.
The documents do not make clear what happened after guards left. After about a half-hour, the interrogator called for the guards to reposition the prisoner, who was slouching with his arms stretched behind him.
The interrogator told guards that al-Jamadi was "playing possum" - faking it - and then watched as guards struggled to get him on his feet. But the guards realized it was useless.
"After we found out he was dead, they were nervous," Spc. Dennis E. Stevanus said of the CIA interrogator and translator. "They didn't know what the hell to do."
Comments
I know the main reason why this article has been posted on this site is to say to the readers "hey, Bush sucks, and look what's been happening in Abu Gharib...isn't this so sad...so inhumane...war sucks...this wouldn't be happening if Kerry was prez...blah blah blah" Well, so what? Fundamentalists have been chopping off the heads of our people and other innocent victims...but that's not a big deal to the liberals: the only torture that is apparently happening is what has happened in that prison: some underwear over a guys head and a palestinian hanging. Yet hundreds of thousands of Iraqis have been killed under Sadams reign for...not to mention the deaths of our great soldiers fighting this war. I know in 50 years or so from now, when Iraquis are living a democratic lifestyle, it will be the liberals sucking up all the appreciation for it.
Posted by: Anonymous | February 18, 2005 01:37 AM
hmm...
i detect some homoerotic undertones there, texas drawllll. something else on your mind?
Posted by: Anonymous | February 18, 2005 01:07 PM
"Fundamentalists have been chopping off the heads of our people and other innocent victims"
- you can thank George Bush for that one. thank him for turning Iraq into a jihadist playground.
"...but that's not a big deal to the liberals"
- it is a big deal, but we can't answer for their crimes, only ours. and ignoring it and not raising a ruckus about it only encourages jihadists to slice more heads off.
"Yet hundreds of thousands of Iraqis have been killed under Sadams reign for...not to mention the deaths of our great soldiers fighting this war."
- not our f'ing problem. what is our problem now are the hundreds of thousands of innocent Iraqis that we killed in our quest for dominance in the middle east. we gave ol'Sadaam a big helping hand. thank G Bush for that too while yer at it cowboy/J
Posted by: Jah | February 18, 2005 02:30 PM
This made me want to cry...
Posted by: Jamie | February 18, 2005 04:22 PM
It is a shame that the initial contributor to this discussion isn't able to separate his persona with his political party. It is a double shame that he/she (probably a he judging by the testosterone poisoned tactless Texan-style agression) dismissed the article which, regardless of your position on the war or who you voted for, is incredibly sad. It is regretful and embarrassing that a person with a fair education and clearly at least average financial standing within the context of the world (considering he's on this website), can condone such awful torture of any human being. Even George W. himself, I would bet, would be ernestly and passionatly against this type of torture. I mean seriously, try empathizing for just one second.
And, if you have the idea that some how we're ending terrorism by torturing terrorists you're sadly mistaken. We're only kicking around a bee's nest.
Again, try separating your political persuasion from your persona. Try being an individual (see also Noam Chomsky). Give it a try, just as an exercise. After all, everyone should know their opponent thoroughly in an argument or a war (unlike our government in this and the Vietnam war).
Posted by: Chris | February 21, 2005 12:41 PM
Chomsky sucks balls.
Posted by: Anonymous | February 21, 2005 03:54 PM