Wednesday, April 22, 2009

Khalid Sheik Mohammed Waterboarded 183 Times in One Month


By: emptywheel Saturday April 18, 2009 11:57 am

http://emptywheel.firedoglake.com/2009/04/18/khalid-sheikh-mohammed-was-...

(PLS READ THE COMMENTS AT HUFFINGTON POST- on the FRONTPAGE at this moment)
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/04/18/cia-waterboarded-khalid-s_n_188...

I've put this detail in a series of posts, but it really deserves a full post. According to the May 30, 2005 Bradbury memo, Khalid Sheikh Mohammed was waterboarded 183 times in March 2003 and Abu Zubaydah was waterboarded 83 times in August 2002. Would such work be construed as Mind Control trauma-based conditioning to make them believe they were the masterminds behind 9/11? It is now reported that the "mastermind" has multiple personalities and is a full-blown nutcase.

On page 37 of the OLC memo, in a passage discussing the differences between SERE techniques and the torture used with detainees, the memo explains:

The CIA used the waterboard "at least 83 times during August 2002" in the interrogation of Zubaydah. IG Report at 90, and 183 times during March 2003 in the interrogation of KSM, see id. at 91.

Disturbing secret memos released yesterday detail the sadistic interrogation methods the Bush administration authorized the CIA to use on detainees. These memos provide shocking confirmation of high-level involvement in the Bush torture program.

It's appalling to see how far our nation strayed from our commitment to human rights. To restore our values we must demand accountability from those responsible.

The last thing America can do now is adopt a “let bygones be bygones” approach to these despicable and indefensible activities.

In America, no one is above the law -- and when crimes have been committed, our legal system demands accountability.

It took five long years for the ACLU to force these memos out into the open. And, no matter how long it takes, we’re going to keep pushing until those responsible for these heinous acts are held accountable.

As the Washington Post writes of Guantanamo Bay detainee Abu Zubaida:


President George W. Bush had publicly described him as "al-Qaeda's chief of operations," and other top officials called him a "trusted associate" of al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden and a major figure in the planning of the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks. None of that was accurate, the new evidence showed.

Okay, maybe they got that one wrong.

But certainly Khalid Sheikh Mohammed's confession that he was the mastermind of 9/11 proves his guilt, right?

Well, as the Telegraph notes today:

Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, the self-confessed mastermind of 9/11, was waterboarded 183 times in one month, and “confessed” to murdering the journalist Daniel Pearl, which he did not. There could hardly be more compelling evidence that such techniques are neither swift, nor efficient, nor reliable

If one of Khalid Sheikh Mohammed's major confessions (Pearl murder) was false, why should we believe his confession about 9/11?

After all, tough-as-nails Navy Seals usually become hysterical when waterboarded once in training sessions. After 183 waterboarding sessions in a month, I wouldn't be surprised if KSM also confessed to murdering Lincoln and Kennedy.

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