The New York Times is breaking a story about 700 classified prisoner files released to them by an unknown source.
Major Hat Tip and Credit to Empty Vessel who broke this on the site and asked for another Diary
Among the choicer quotes from the article is this example:
The dossiers also show the seat-of-the-pants intelligence gathering in war zones that led to the incarcerations of innocent men for years in cases of mistaken identity or simple misfortune. In May 2003, for example, Afghan forces captured Prisoner 1051, an Afghan named Sharbat, near the scene of a roadside bomb explosion, the documents show. He denied any involvement, saying he was a shepherd. Guantánamo debriefers and analysts agreed, citing his consistent story, his knowledge of herding animals and his ignorance of “simple military and political concepts,” according to his assessment. Yet a military tribunal declared him an “enemy combatant” anyway, and he was not sent home until 2006.
The article states there is little evidence in the files of waterboarding or other abusive treatment of prisoners, although I would describe the above as pretty damned abusive!
The New York Times is saying that these files were obtained by Wikileaks, but provided to the NYT by another source.
Among the findings in the files is this regarding a suspected twentieth participant in the 9/11 plot:
The 20th hijacker: The best-documented case of an abusive interrogation at Guantánamo was the coercive questioning, in late 2002 and early 2003, of Mohammed Qahtani. A Saudi believed to have been an intended participant in the Sept. 11 attacks, Mr. Qahtani was leashed like a dog, sexually humiliated and forced to urinate on himself. His file says, “Although publicly released records allege detainee was subject to harsh interrogation techniques in the early stages of detention,” his confessions “appear to be true and are corroborated in reporting from other sources.” But claims that he is said to have made about at least 16 other prisoners — mostly in April and May 2003 — are cited in their files without any caveat.
At least as important as the details themselves, has to be the picture of so many shattered lives based upon faulty and flawed intelligence.
And still this establishment continues to operate. A fact I balme on no one but Republicans who refuse to fund the safe and organised transfer of these men into the Federal Justice System.
It may be the case that they need to be tried, but they need real trials, in real courts, with real lawyers.
The Guardian has now gone to press with this story ....
You can find it here
This is from the Guardian piece:
The files depict a system often focused less on containing dangerous terrorists or enemy fighters, than on extracting intelligence. Among inmates who proved harmless were an 89-year-old Afghan villager, suffering from senile dementia, and a 14-year-old boy who had been an innocent kidnap victim.
The old man was transported to Cuba to interrogate him about "suspicious phone numbers" found in his compound. The 14-year-old was shipped out merely because of "his possible knowledge of Taliban...local leaders"