Former interrogator slams torture: Torture has cost nearly as many lives as 9/11.»

News Type: Event — Seeded on Sun Nov 30, 2008 4:11 PM EST

Article Source: Think Progress

In a Washington Post op-ed today, a former Special Operations interrogator who worked in Iraq in 2006 sharply criticizes American torture techniques as ineffective and dangerous.

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The writer, who used a pseudonym for the article, adds that when he switched his team's techniques to a rapport-building method, they found enormous success.

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The author, who is writing a book on his experiences as an interrogator, notes that the Pentagon tried to redact non-classified information and block parts of his book. "Apparently, some members of the military command are not only unconvinced by the arguments against torture; they don't even want the public to hear them," he writes.

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{"commentId":4241285,"authorDomain":"PeterMerel"}

Peter Merel

I learned in Iraq that the No. 1 reason foreign fighters flocked there to fight were the abuses carried out at Abu Ghraib and Guantanamo. Our policy of torture was directly and swiftly recruiting fighters for al-Qaeda in Iraq. The large majority of suicide bombings in Iraq are still carried out by these foreigners. They are also involved in most of the attacks on U.S. and coalition forces in Iraq. It's no exaggeration to say that at least half of our losses and casualties in that country have come at the hands of foreigners who joined the fray because of our program of detainee abuse. The number of U.S. soldiers who have died because of our torture policy will never be definitively known, but it is fair to say that it is close to the number of lives lost on Sept. 11, 2001. How anyone can say that torture keeps Americans safe is beyond me -- unless you don't count American soldiers as Americans.

{"commentId":4241285,"threadId":"431128","contentId":"2163491","authorDomain":"PeterMerel"}

3 votes

#1 - Sun Nov 30, 2008 4:34 PM EST

{"commentId":4242171,"authorDomain":"rdonaldsnyder"}

R. Donald Snyder

The people who authorized the use of torture are war criminals and the lot of them need to go to prison, with a few exceptions for those who agree to testify. From the one doing the water-boarding, right up to Bush and Cheney both of whom should get the longest terms. They're all scum.

{"commentId":4242171,"threadId":"431128","contentId":"2163491","authorDomain":"rdonaldsnyder"}

5 votes

#2 - Sun Nov 30, 2008 7:24 PM EST

{"commentId":4254889,"authorDomain":"barbara474"}

Barbara in Houston

At the risk of sounding like a broken record........As a former US Army Interrogator, the orders for what was done came from the highest levels and needs to be prosecuted to those levels. This is policy set in process by the current(thankfully not for long) Administration. These crimes are against Army regulations and training for good reason and this article nailed it. Bush, Cheney, and every person in the chain of command who participated, broke the laws of this nation and conventions agreed to by the rest of the civilized world.

On another note: As a former prisoner of War John McCain stated he wanted to see the 'personnel on the ground' prosecuted, but he KNOWS that this is not enough. Torture is not only immoral and illegal but procures no valid information and is a danger to our own troops.

{"commentId":4254889,"threadId":"431128","contentId":"2163491","authorDomain":"barbara474"}

3 votes

#3 - Tue Dec 2, 2008 12:20 AM EST

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Former interrogator slams torture: Torture has cost nearly as many lives as 9/11.»

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