CIA Destroyed 12 Videotapes Of Harsh Interrogations

WASHINGTON — The CIA destroyed a dozen videotapes of harsh interrogations of terror suspects, according to documents filed Friday in a lawsuit over the government's treatment of detainees. The 12 tapes were part of a larger collection of 92 videotapes of terror suspects that the CIA destroyed. The extent of the tape destruction was disclosed through a suit filed by the American Civil Liberties Union against the government.

Heavily redacted papers filed in the case indicate a dozen destroyed tapes show so-called "enhanced interrogation techniques."

The CIA's enhanced interrogation methods are secret, but they once included waterboarding, which simulates drowning.

As part of the Bush administration's response to the 2001 terror attacks, the CIA held fewer than 100 prisoners at secret sites and used harsh interrogation methods on about one-third of them, according to agency officials. Former CIA director Michael Hayden has acknowledged that waterboarding was used on three suspects.

The ACLU's lawsuit on detainee treatment has been on hold while a separate criminal investigation was conducted into the destruction of the tapes.

The criminal investigation includes interrogations of al-Qaida lieutenant Abu Zubaydah and another top al-Qaida leader. Tapes of those interrogations were destroyed, in part, the Bush administration said, to protect the identities of the government questioners at a time the Justice Department was debating whether or not the tactics used during the interrogations were legal.

That probe is now winding down, and government lawyers signaled earlier this week that they would begin providing some of the answers the ACLU had been seeking.

Government lawyers say they will provide a further accounting of other records relating to the tapes later this month.

The documents offered Friday were mostly redacted. A list of the tapes is almost completely blacked out.

ACLU lawyer Amrit Singh criticized the government for "needlessly withholding information about these tapes from the public, despite the fact that the CIAs use of torture _ including _ is no secret."

In his first week as president, Barack Obama signed an order prohibiting the CIA from using coercive interrogation techniques that already are banned by the Pentagon. He also ordered the closing of secret CIA "black site" prisons abroad where terror suspects have been held.

Comments

[harrymellon]

Just like them to cover up. Like recently having Celerne Castillo arrested and jailed on fake gun charges. He as the valient DEA agent and CIA asset that blew the whistle on CIA coke dealing during the 80s. They are going after him now because he had morals that interfered with their plan to covertly raise funds by importing tons and tons of cocaine and using the DEA to sell it. Same story and they need to be held accountable finally.

[NoSillyName]

I'm sure "harsh" is the mildest adjective available.

[NotMcCain]

This scares me. How many creeps are still IN the CIA right now?

I don't like this. Very dangerous.

[Hallucinocynic]

So what's the count at now?

What's to suggest that there aren't more, a lot more audio/video tapes that have been destroyed?

I sense that the legal staff at the Hague is getting ready to issue warrants.

I hope Holder does his job.

[spandautoseattle]

That's the point. He is not. Yet. It seems that the public -again- has to push for results, which would be a poor display on part of the new Dep. of Justice.
Yes, it's still quite early to judge their efforts, but has the ACLU to do their job?

[greyhound2]

The destruction of evidence is an automatic guilty by default.

[PWM]

Exactly. Whatever was on them must have been horrific.

Bush probably watched them for entertainment.

[aliceinks]

Hmm I want to know what was on the tapes. I'm not against water boarding and Bush defends it so, something tells me there was something more horrific on them.....maybe. : -(

[NoSillyName]

You're for waterboarding because bush defends it?

Okay.

[Gidster]

We can waterboard Cheney for information.........

[separatingwheatfromchaff]

I'm just guessing but wouldn't there be persons who reviewed these tapes to see which ones should be destroyed?Wouldn't a good attorney be able to reconstitute the material that was on the tape through testimony of these persons? I would guess a good attorney with the backing of the Department of Justice could bring down this house of lies and crime with a threat of perjury charges and some well placed offers of immunity.

[greatlakesgirl]

CIA is a terrorist group. From the early years of arms/weapons to countries in exchange for information, drug runs during the Reagan, Clinton, Bush era and many deaths with false charges against sovereign countries, this agency is no better than Osama bin Laden and al Queda. As a baby boomer and with investigative and analytic mindset, I've followed this illegal agency for years, knowing how corrupt the Republican Party and it's kickbacks work, the untruth's told to the American people and the sinister growth of wealth with activities such as this, creating wealth among many in the southern states and their plots to disarm the media from exposure.

[Wozzeck]

The term "harsh interrogation" in your headline is an euphemism to justify the use of torture.
The term is favored by John Yoo and Alan Dershowitz.

[hildutus]

I prefer the first term they used, "enhanced interrogation techniques." It's a much more precise translation of the original phrase -- in German.

[Wozzeck]

Here are some terms that were in the running:

"Enriched inquiries"

"Embellished interviews"

"Augmented data requests"

[lungfish]

Given that the Bush Administration assured us that "enhanced interrogations" were only used on three subjects and though the videos were destroyed they were the only ones. Now we learn that there are almost 100 of them and at least a dozen were destroyed presumeably because their content is embarassing to the CIA and the Bush Administration.
Gore told us that nearly 100 people who were caught up in the "rendition" program died in captivity. It is reasonable to assume that they died of something other than natural causes... perhaps these videos are of those interrogations....
The CIA kidnapped at least 200 people through the rendition program and most of those were authorized by Jose Rodriquez and he is bunkered up with attornies as we speak due to the questions, deaths and falsely accused victims....

[Right-turn]

Good for them! Dead men and tapes tell no tales.

[lungfish]

yea, especially when you are innocent and tortured to death......

[Tim303]

It's quite likely that the International Criminal Court will file an arrest warrant for W et al. Rumsfeld is already persona non grata in various countries, like Kissinger. I can't believe they have that guy on the TV. You know how weird that looks to a non-US person? Kissinger on the TV?

[Kaviraj]

No arrest will ever be made by theHague. For it will indict many of the NATO country's governments too and that would destroy the alliance. These govermernts aided and abetted the US govt. in extraordinary rendition and thus torture.

[ecotopian]

I'm shocked, shocked to find that something like that would happen. OK, maybe not.

[mgloraine]

The CIA is worse than useless, it's a recurring disaster. What use is a government agency whose mission is to dream up new crime sprees and ways to cover them up? For a criminal enterprise like the Cheney-Bush Gang or its predecessor, the Reagan Conspiracy, having a team of crooked thugs at one's disposal probably seemed like standard Republican equipment, but for an administration NOT expending all of its energy on crimes against humanity, the gathering of a little intelligence would probably suffice. Too bad the CIA has failed at that task since day one and no prospect for improvement anywhere on the horizon.

The CIA is definitely one of those huge annual wasters of revenue which needs to be eliminated altogether. They cost us billions every year, in exchange for which we get nothing of value, only gigantic failures and humanitarian debacles. That's money which could be put to better use just about anywhere.

[weatherwaxx]

Too many letters in 'harsh interrogation techniques.' Why not simplify?

T O R T U R E


We don't need a Truth Commission - we need a special prosecutor for High Treason and War Crimes.