Wilkerson: al-Libi’s Waterboarding
Lawrence Wilkerson says Dick Cheney ordered Ibn Sheikh al-Libi to be waterboarded in February 2002.
Author Archive for: emptywheel
Entries by emptywheel
Pelosi: CIA Told Us Waterboarding “Was Not Being Employed”
Pelosi has confirmed something I’ve been pointing out for weeks. When the CIA briefed Pelosi and Goss on September 4, 2002, it told them that waterboarding was not being employed.
The CIA comes to Congress and withholds information about the timing and the use of this subject. We later find out that it had been taking place before they even briefed us about the legal opinions and told us that they
Senator Bob Graham: The CIA Made Up Two Briefing Sessions
Bob Graham says that when he asked when CIA briefed him on torture, they gave him two briefing dates when no briefing had even occurred.
The 9/11 Commission and Torture
A number of people are out today reporting that the 9/11 Report relies on the information from detainees who had been tortured. That is true. Though most of the information came after the worst torture stopped.
About the Foto Flip-Flop
I think Obama will lose his purported attempt to keep the DOD abuse photos secret. But I also think, to prove his good intentions, he ought to order DOD to make the embarrassing information behind these photos available.
Philip Zelikow: How BushCo Gamed the Briefing Process
Philip Zelikow made clear in today’s hearing how Congressional briefing should work. But all the evidence suggests that’s not what happened.
“If You’re Trying to Commit a Crime,” You Wouldn’t Brief Democrats
Lindsey Graham says that if the Bush Administration were trying to commit a crime, then they wouldn’t brief Democrats on what they were doing. And, as it turns out, that’s precisely what the Administration did–not brief Democrats.
Soufan’s Narrative
Ali Soufan didn’t get to read his entire prepared statement in today’s SJC hearing. But his prepared statement adds some more nuance to the narrative of how CIA started to torture Abu Zubaydah. [Except where linked, the details below come from Soufan’s testimony.
March 28, 2002: Abu Zubaydah caught.
March 31, 2002: AZ flown to Thailand.
Lindsey Graham: Cheney Put People in Gitmo Who Weren’t Military Threat
In a statement at SJC’s torture hearing, Lindsey Graham just suggested that Dick Cheney was the guy who had determined who got sent to Gitmo.
Senate Judiciary Hearing on Torture, Two
Whitehouse: SASC report. Great deal of disagreement with OLC analysis. Mora called 2003 OLC memo profoundly in error. To extent that it relied on memo, did not include fair analysis. Chart based on OLC opinion. Green means go column. Read Admiral Dalton, that green column was wrong legally, embarrassing.
