Sifton: Torture Investigation Should Focus on Est. 100 Prisoner Deaths.

[balantz]

Run time: 08:52 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OLJ-cnvkGGA   Posted on YouTube: May 14, 2009 By YouTube Member: Views on YouTube: 0   Posted on DU: May 14, 2009 By DU Member: balantz Views on DU: 747

 
Human Rights Investigator, Attorney John Sifton: Torture Investigation Should Focus on Estimated 100 Prisoner Deaths

We get reaction to the Senate hearing on torture from private investigator and attorney John Sifton, executive director of One World Research, which carries out research for law firms and human rights groups. Sifton has conducted extensive investigations into the CIA interrogation and detention program. He says any investigation of Bush administration torture and rendition should include an estimated 100 homicides of prisoners in US custody.

[balantz]

1. Kick

[cornermouse]

2. kick

[slipslidingaway]

3. knr Transcript link

http://www.democracynow.org/2009/5/14/human_rights_investigator_attorney_john_sifton

"JOHN SIFTON: Well, you have, to start, approximately a hundred deaths. The Army has already—the Army Criminal Investigation Command has already determined that a large number of those were homicides, which just means that the death wasn’t the result of natural causes. Then you have to determine whether those homicides were murder.


And the review by Human Rights First, which took place several years ago, showed that in many cases there was good evidence to show that murder had taken place, murder by torture. And yet, the military again and again has closed these investigations. They’ve just sort of petered out.


But there’s a huge amount of documents, tens of thousands of documents. And some of the photographs that are at issue now, with the Obama administration releasing photographs, are photographs that are evidentiary photographs in those investigations.


AMY GOODMAN: Wait. Let’s talk about that, because this is very significant. It’s only been framed as, well, this could incite people. Explain the turnaround, if you can, or what the significance of it is, by Obama saying he would release the photographs, because he cared about transparency, and now he’s saying he’s going to hold onto it. This is after visits, reportedly, from General Odierno and now the fired General McKiernan.


JOHN SIFTON: Well, the photographs are obviously very important, but they’re just one side of the coin. There are large amounts of CIA internal documents from the inspector general’s report that the CIA prepared about detainee abuse. There’s a lot of stuff there, a lot of material that Obama can consider releasing. The photographs, obviously, are very important. It’s good that we’re paying attention to them. But the real evidence that shows the way these techniques spread and the involvement of senior Bush administration officials, that’s not photographs. Those are memos. Those are CIA cables from black sites to Langley, notes from meetings between Langley and the White House, things like that.


AMY GOODMAN: You’ve requested information?


JOHN SIFTON: Well, the thing about the Freedom of Information Act is that you can’t get operational cables; you can only get things like memos. But an investigation, a criminal investigation, or a Senate or Congress—congressional investigation, you could get some of those cables. And those are very important documents..."

[wildbilln864]

4. kick! nt

[sattahipdeep]

5. The CIA appears to have had some close calls with detainees dying.

The CIA appears to have had some close calls with detainees dying. The May 10, 2005, Bradbury memo suggests that one of the CIA’s detainees—likely Abu Zubaydah or Khalid Sheikh Mohammad—stopped breathing or lost consciousness at one point during their waterboarding: According to the CIA’s Office of Medical Services, in their “limited experience... extensive sustained use of the waterboard can introduce new possibly lethal risks.” (To the best of our knowledge, the only “experience” the CIA has with waterboarding being used extensively or in a sustained manner, is with Abu Zubaydah and Khalid Shaikh Mohammad).


The memo explains: “Most seriously, for reasons of physical fatigue of psychological resignation, the subject may simply give up, allowing excessive filling of the airways and loss of consciousness. An unresponsive subject should be righted immediately, and the integrator should deliver a sub-xyphoid thrust to expel the water. If this fails to restore normal breathing, aggressive medical intervention is required....” The memo also notes that CIA doctors present during waterboarding sessions stood by with necessary equipment to perform a tracheotomy if necessary: “

http://www.thedailybeast.com/blogs-and-stories/2009-05-05/how-many-were-tortured-to-death/full/


"People are dying in US custody and no one's being held to account,"

http://www.theage.com.au/news/World/US-torture-blamed-for-detainee-deaths/2006/02/23/1140563890168.html

[sattahipdeep]

6. yep........a regular little business hu

Xe is also conducting its own investigation.

The contractors worked for a company called Paravant, which is affiliated with Xe, the new company name for the security contractor Blackwater Worldwide, according to sources familiar with the incident. Paravant is owned by Erik Prince, who is also the owner of Xe.

http://www.cnn.com/2009/WORLD/asiapcf/05/15/afghanistan.contractors/

[wildbilln864]

7. kick again. nt