Terrorist tapes found under CIA desk(interrogation tapes that were not destroyed)

[maddezmom]

Source: AP

AP Exclusive: Terrorist tapes found under CIA desk
By ADAM GOLDMAN and MATT APUZZO – 40 minutes ago

WASHINGTON — The CIA has tapes of 9/11 plotter Ramzi Binalshibh being interrogated in a secret overseas prison. Discovered under a desk, the recordings could provide an unparalleled look at how foreign governments aided the U.S. in holding and questioning suspected terrorists.

The two videotapes and one audiotape are believed to be the only remaining recordings made within the clandestine prison system.

The tapes depict Binalshibh's interrogation sessions at a Moroccan-run facility the CIA used near Rabat in 2002, several current and former U.S. officials told The Associated Press. They spoke on the condition of anonymity because the recordings remain a closely guarded secret.

When the CIA destroyed its cache of 92 videos of two other al-Qaida operatives, Abu Zubaydah and Abd al-Nashiri, being waterboarded in 2005, officials believed they had wiped away all of the agency's interrogation footage. But in 2007, a staffer discovered a box tucked under a desk in the CIA's Counterterrorism Center and pulled out the Binalshibh tapes.



Read more: http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5iDIFW90XZo2Gv_VMKqwtXFTj1VLAD9HL3JMO0

---

good background article on the tapes:
Lawyers left off memo to destroy CIA terror tapes
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/38416094/ns/us_news-security/

[Angry Dragon]

1. I just love it when the government lies

and cover-ups as much as they can.........

[24601]

75. Then you must be disappointed that the CIA guy/gal finding the

tapes didn't just toss them in the shredder rather than bring them forward - just like a law-abiding citizen would. Then you could have had your complete cover up.

Thanks for praising his/her actions back in 2007 when you-know-who was running things. Oops, that's right, you didn't. Never mind, I'll commend the action and you needn't bother to take the time & effort.

Thanks CIA dude/dudette. Even though you and everyone you ever have known probably are the center of gravity for all evil in the universe, you did well & I'm proud you didn't fulfill A. Dragon's cover-up fantasy.

[Turborama]

2. Wow, could this be what's on WikiLeaks' "Insurance" file?

1.4 Gigs would hold a fair amount of video and audio.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=102x4486591

[sabrina 1]

3. That is a very interesting possibility.

That would definitely be very good 'insurance'.

[dipsydoodle]

4. ditto

That would really freak them out that getting loose.

[LawnKorn]

7. If Wikileaks has the videos, I hope they are in the public domain shortly

[Turborama]

9. That 1.4 Gig file has been available to download for a couple of weeks now

But no-one (outside of NSA) has been able to open it, as far as I know.

Also, I was just thinking that if it's heavily compressed it's going to end up being more than 1.4 Gigs.

[Soylent Brice]

19. i hope you're right.

damn, i hope you're right.

[no limit]

32. Could be? Sure. Likely? Probably not.

[Solly Mack]

5. K&R

[kickysnana]

6. Way back before 911 shortly after the (s)election

There were a lot more people with connections that were trying to stop what eventually happened. We were told that there were men from Arab countries taking flying lessons across America and that the FBI was aware of them. During that discussion the obvious question was asked. Why are they letting all of them continue? A poster came on and stated that there was a war going on in the intelligence community and what ever side won would determine the direction our country would go in.

I thought for sure that the bad guys had won and probably eliminated all the good guys like the Middle East experts but perhaps some true patriot sleepers remained in the game waiting for the right time to make a difference. One can hope even yet.

[donquijoterocket]

28. oops wrong desk

I'm thinking it's too bad that desk wasn't one of those G.W. looked under when he did the comedy routine about searching for those pesky WMDs. Or maybe he did and Dead eye Dickless Cheney and the office of special plans told him to just kick them back under there nothing to see here George keep looking.
I doubt that many on the wingnut side will wish to remember how Speaker Pelosi claimed the House was not fully briefed on all the sub rosa goings on. I do recall they got plenty exercised about it at the time. Were I her I'd throw this in their faces and video the looks I got.

[Ikonoklast]

38. Dubya wanted to be a "War Prezdint" and make his mark on history.

It went exactly the way it was planned.

[KamaAina]

57. Unfortunately, his mark was an "X"

:dunce:

[LawnKorn]

8. K&R

[Loudmxr]

10. I think you are all sniffing down the right trail.

Found in a box. Don't make me pshaw!

This was in someone's cousin's old paint can in another state. It could be insurance. It could be just something waiting for a boss to retire or be transferred. Who knows. But its here.

[aquart]

11. "Under a desk"? Don't they sweep?

This give a very messy impression of our intelligence organizations.

[Myrina]

33. Probaby part of some perv's idea of a porn stash ....

My money's on Cheney and his S&M fetish ...

[slampoet]

58. "Under a desk" is a metaphor. It means someone held onto it, didn't want to be caught,

passed it on to someone or someplace else, an indeterminate amount of time passed and then the tapes literally were found someplace they were meant to be found in, or maybe found in a retiring person's office clean out.

The phrase is there to protect people who are doing the right thing and want to remain employed. Every foreign agency knows that.

[CJCRANE]

12. Maybe Shrub found them

when he was looking for the WMD.

[sofa king]

13. The headline says "terror," but I read "torture."

And with that word comes all the moral ambiguity and factual uncertainty that the subject deserves.

[gblady]

17. I did the same thing....

interesting how the mind works.

[lob1]

61. That's the way I read it, too. Our minds seem to

make the correct translation.

[wordpix]

71. me, too

[xchrom]

14. recommend

[activa8tr]

15. Why do I think that these tapes will NEVER SEE THE LIGHT OF

day again? There will be an IMMEDIATE NATIONAL SECURITY THREAT....or our government going to court to force a ruling that they are not released.

[fogonthelake]

16. yes, you are right.

[lunatica]

20. Now that you mention it

I had almost forgotten the use of the Color Codes and the timing of the Osama Bin Laden tapes of the Bush Era. But from what I've seen Obama's administration hasn't done that. He's just gone ahead and sent more troops without resorting to those tricks.

I hate these wars. As a Progressive I can easily imagine this world without them. Things would be so different for us and for those countries we've tried to destroy in our own unique cavalier way.

[liberal N proud]

22. Since Obama took office, the level has been lowered

Currently yellow, lower than it was during the entire bu$h regime.

[metapunditedgy]

60. Airport announcements say "orange." Maybe that's a different threat class, LOL. n/t

[liberal N proud]

62. I could be wrong

[24601]

69. From the DHS website

August 17. 2010

•The United States government's national threat level is Elevated, or Yellow.
•For all domestic and international flights, the U.S. threat level is High, or Orange.

(http://www.dhs.gov/files/programs/Copy_of_press_release_0046.shtm)

More info:

- The national level has been yellow since 12 Aug 2005.

- August 10, 2006 – present, for all domestic airline flights and all international flights to or from the United States, with the exception of flights from the United Kingdom to the United States. Flights from the United Kingdom to the United States had been under a Severe alert, but were downgraded to High on August 13, 2006.<19>

[derby378]

29. Under the Bush administration, the holder of the tapes would suffer a sudden heart attack...

...either that, or he'd fall from the top of a 10-story building with a with a blood alcohol level of .25, and nobody would pay any attention to the homeless man who said he saw a man in chinos fleeing the scene with a suspecious bundle of tapes. The homeless man would soon die, too - victim of an apparent drive-by shooting.

I can only hope that the Obama administration does the right thing and exposes these tapes to public scrutiny.

[Soylent Brice]

18. K&R

[Iggo]

21. Oops.

Fucking goddam torturers.

Goddam motherfucking war criminals.

[Mr. Sparkle]

23. Is it possible to dare a dream, Bush, Cheney and Rumsfeld behind bars?

That would be sweet :)

[groovedaddy]

44. Wouldn't it though? I'd throw a party! n.t

[truth2power]

50. Re: Cheney behind bars...

Do they have electrical outlets in jail cells?

[24601]

68. Cheney? No VP is in any chain of command except for his

immediate personal staff. The Operational Chain of Command runs from POTUS directly to the SECDEF (Title 10 Ops) or CIA Director (Title 50 Presidential Findings). The VP is not the "Deputy Commander in Chief" and cannot issue orders. All he can do is offer personal opinions, preside over the Senate & break ties, perform duties delegated by POTUS; and, check the front page obituary every morning to see if his job has changed.

[truth2power]

73. It was my attempt at humor. Seeing as he has to plug himself in every night. n/t

[24601]

74. I didn't intend it in a mean way - sorry of it came across that way.

I'm just kind of a policy wonk who jumps in on government-related threads.

Cheers.

[INdemo]

24. This is too easy ..I mean CIA agents just dont find tapes then reveal

this info to the public..Wouldn't this be top secret material?

[lurky]

40. Yeah. They don't usually announce crimes and F-ups to the press.

And for an individual agent to leak the info would be suicidal, I think.

Plus, the "under a desk" thing is ludicrous. At least I hope, for the sake of our country, that they made that part up.

I don't see how they could possibly spin this into a positive story for themselves. So, maybe it really is a pre-emptive leak. If they know this stuff is coming out eventually, they could be trying to control the narrative, I guess. :shrug:

[INdemo]

49. Again I could expect this kind of story coming from a Bush administration

But..Are we really sure Bush is back in Texas

[EFerrari]

55. Yeah. And for a bonus, Apuzzo is one of the reporters

that simply forwarded the FBI faxes on the Ivins case that weren't even consistent with the FBI's own story.

[Frisbee]

25. I believe this is the tape Dick Cheney used...

to masturbate. Now hopefully it is the tape that finally gets him indicted. (yeah like that's ever gonna happen)

[peacetalksforall]

27. If Cheney doesn't survive, it means we have to get the truth from the next level - no matter how

long it takes.

[awnobles]

51. Ha ha ha ha ha

Good one!

[peacetalksforall]

26. Terrorist tapes found.. (Torture tapes found? CIA tapes found?)

This country WAS the terrorist country, the torture country, the intelligence gone murderous country.

This country IS the terrorist country, the torture country, the intelligence gone murderous country?

One thing is not clear. Obama said he was ending torture at Guantanamo. Did it or did it not include everywhere else?

If it's only Guantanamo it means a deal was made with the US military-intelligence rulers within this country.

And it is probably more a result of legal ramifications since we lease the land (though Castro has refused payments for over a half century?) And because they must allow lawyers and agencies into Guantanamo if for no other reason than public relations.

I am resentful and angry about all the nations that participated in this program by setting up the prisons - or for fuel stops.

Morocco Poland Romania Ireland ..... how many?

Just imagine the money made by the friends of the military-CIA who owned, leased, piloted the jets. Imagine the fuel bill and landing rights bills. Imagine all the kick-backs.

Imagine all those psychiatrist friends that were brought in a paid.

Are we talking past tense OR NOT?

I say CIA, but it is probably also the DIA and NSA and others of our 20 or so intelligence agencies also.

From riches for conducting torture to hungry, uninsured children and their parents IN THIS COUNTRY and teachers getting laid off (fired) and schools closing and trillions in cas piling up in the banks and wall street.

This nation is still sick. Sick in the heart. Sick in the head. Sick in the body.

What is or is not still going on?

[jimmil]

31. Torture is nothing new to the U.S.

"One thing is not clear. Obama said he was ending torture at Guantanamo. Did it or did it not include everywhere else?

If it's only Guantanamo it means a deal was made with the US military-intelligence rulers within this country."

You can be sure that these places of torture have been operated by the US intelligence agencies for many years. If there was any legislation enacted limiting or totally banning the intelligence gathering techniques (ie kidnapping and torture) it was moved elsewhere to avoid any limitations and over site. This type of thing has been going on since the American Revolution in one way or another. However, the real torture as we know it today most likely started in WWII and has continued unabated since. The U.S. as well as just about every country on the planet engages in torture. It isn't anything new by any means.

[Festivito]

30. Obstruction of justice charges should still be levied.

And, I wonder if they now have all of the tapes. Notice how they neatly call the tapes the Binalshibh tapes, not the tapes or those tapes which would include all the tapes that were talking about having been destroyed.

[Hubert Flottz]

34. K&R

And right here at election time....

[disillusioned73]

42. My thoughts exactly..

if this is detrimental to the Dems, than it is a definite political hit and well thought out and planned....

This will not end well for the "party in power" - end the wars ASAP

[DeSwiss]

35. Under a desk, huh?

Gee, I wonder what are the odds of that being true? We must really seem like absolute fucking idiots to these bastards. Of course given our track record on what we've let them get away with in the past....


- I can see why they'd think we'd believe this shit.

K&R

[crim son]

36. You're right.

People are always shaking their heads in disgust and asking if the government believes we're idiots. Of course they do - we haven't given them any reason not to believe it.

[SILVER__FOX52]

37. Our Government, at times, acts like it is a private company

and that the citizens are just a nuisance and a bother. I think that's called FASCISM. The Republicans destroyed our Democracy. Why? I don't think people truly understand that our Country has been usurped by an Oligarchy and it's effectively, all over. We can take it back but you have recognize your enemy before you can defeat them.

[hugo_from_TN]

39. Was the Rose Law Firm in charge of them?

;-)

[OnyxCollie]

41. K&R. nt

[dadzilla]

43. I'd bet on more finds...

This story has the smell of something baking in the oven.

[groovedaddy]

45. I demand that OMB check out who is (or, rather, IS NOT) cleaning the floors at Langley. This is a

clearly a waste of taxpayer money. Torture? Meh.

[bergie321]

46. My optimistic side

Is hoping people are prosecuted.

My pessimistic(and logical) side are saying that these tapes will show CIA agents treating some guy with kid gloves and will be used as "proof" that no torture occurred.

[Joey Kidd]

47. Same here.

I really hope that it's not a staged light interrogation and that people can be identified in it.

[The_Casual_Observer]

48. This is confusing to me, the other tapes were destroyed "mistakenly"

and couldn't be salvaged, and now some more have surfaced & they aren't authorized to destroy them anymore? If this is the case, then it's quite a find and pretty inconvenient for sure.

[unionize]

52. Comical isn't it

Does anyone have a logical answer to this question? How is it
possible for the world's eminent intelligence gathering group
to misplace a tape recording (video) of a primary terrorist
suspect being "interrogated" underneath a desk?
Perhaps I am alone in believing this is just another example
of misdirection.

[Lightning Count]

53. Can't believe how many people are taking this bait.

This tape will amazingly show that rendition to a foreign prison is not so bad and our CIA is A-OK.

Just you watch.

[Turborama]

65. Or, not.

You saying it's "bait" doesn't make it so.

It might be what your conspiracy theory radar (CTR) tells you, or then again your CTR could have picked up a bad signal.

[gateley]

Delete - Dupe

[gateley]

54. Who needs Wikileaks? nt

[dipsydoodle]

56. US officials have confirmed the existence of videotapes

US officials have confirmed the existence of videotapes of the 2002 interrogation of an alleged 9/11 plotter, reportedly at a secret prison.

The tapes, which the Associated Press said were found under a CIA desk, are said to show Ramzi Binalshibh at a Moroccan-run jail once used by the CIA.

But a US official downplayed their significance, saying they "show a guy sitting at a desk answering questions".

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-11002399

[keopeli]

59. I believe it was a lie that they destroyed them, and that they're lying that it was under a desk.

I believe they've had them all along. "Under a desk" is a lame excuse. Perhaps they need to use the tapes now. I believe the likelihood that WikiLeaks has forced the govt's hand is very high indeed.

Peace

[L0oniX]

63. Yes ...but was Monica there too...

...or were those tapes sold to Hustler?

[defendandprotect]

64. Trust someone was smart enough to save this stuff ... sadly, US a torturing/terrorist nation!!

[russspeakeasy]

66. "Inside Out" by Barry Eisler does a nice job on this subject

[valerief]

67. Shoot, I wonder what's in the back of the closet. nt

[laughingliberal]

70. K & R nt

[wordpix]

72. Has Obama seen the tapes, I wonder? Eric Holder?

I mean, they were discovered in 2007 so what's being done?

[wildbilln864]

76. kick! nt