Details of the cycle of interrogations of Abu Zubaydah on August 7, 2002 (August 2002)

[REDACTED] AUG 02 [REDACTED]

CITE: [REDACTED]

SUBJECT: EYES ONLY - DETAILS RE 07 AUGUST 2002 CYCLE OF INTERROGATIONS OF ABU ZUBAYDAH

[REDACTED]

TEXT:

1. ACTION REQUIRED: NONE.

2. DAY FOUR OF THE AGGRESSIVE INTERROGATION PHASE COMMENCED ON 7 AUGUST 2002 AT 0949 HOURS LOCAL TIME. ((ABU ZUBAYDAH)) (SUBJECT) SPENT THE PREVIOUS EVENING IN THE LARGE CONFINEMENT BOX. PER THE CURRENT INTERROGATION STRATEGY SUBJECT'S SLEEP CONTINUES TO BE DISRUPTED THROUGHOUT THE NIGHT. THE INTERROGATION TEAM ENTERED THE CELL, THE DOOR TO THE LARGE CONFINEMENT BOX WAS OPENED AND THE INTERROGATOR ASKED SUBJECT WHETHER HE HAD BEEN THINKING DURING HIS TIME IN THE BOX. SUBJECT HAD NO RESPONSE AND WAS LED TO THE WALLING WALL. AS PART OF THE STRATEGY FOR THIS SESSION, THE WATER BOARD WAS PLACED IN THE CELL DOOR WHERE SUBJECT COULD EASILY SEE IT. [REDACTED]

USING THE ROLLED TOWEL/NECK SUPPORT, THE INTERROGATOR INTERMITTENTLY WALLED SUBJECT AND TURNED SUBJECT'S HEAD TOWARD THE WATER BOARD, TELLING SUBJECT THAT HIS (THE INTERROGATOR'S) JOB IS TO EITHER PUT THE SUBJECT ON THE WATER BOARD OR GET INFORMATION FROM SUBJECT TO STOP OPERATIONS AGAINST THE UNITED STATES. [REDACTED]

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AT 1000 HOURS, SUBJECT WAS PUT IN THE SMALL CONFINEMENT BOX [REDACTED] WHILE IN THE SMALL CONFINEMENT BOX, SUBJECT WAS HEARD RECITING A LITANY OF PRAYERS IN ARABIC. SUBJECT MURMURED FREQUENTLY TO HIMSELF AND MAY HAVE POSSIBLY BEEN CRYING AT TIMES.

3. AT 1115 HOURS, SUBJECT WAS REMOVED FROM THE SMALL BOX. THE INTERROGATOR WAS HOLDING THE NECK BRACE/COLLAR--USED WHEN SUBJECT IS PUT ON THE WATER BOARD--AND ALSO HOLDING THE ROLLED TOWEL/NECK SUPPORT, WHICH IS USED WHEN SUBJECT IS PUT AGAINST THE WALLING WALL. SUBJECT WAS ASKED TO CHOOSE WHICH ONE SHOULD THE INTERROGATOR USE; SUBJECT DID NOT PICK ONE. THE INTEROGATOR SAID THEY WOULD START WITH THE NECK SUPPORT (I.E., THE WALLING WALL) AND WOULD USE THE COLLAR (WATER BOARD) LATER. SUBJECT WAS LED TO THE WALLING WALL [REDACTED] INTERROGATOR BRIEFLY "WALLED" SUBJECT AND USED AN INSULT SLAP AS SUBJECT APPEARED SOMEWHAT DEFIANT. THE NECK COLLAR FOR THE WATER BOARD WAS THEN PLACED AROUND SUBJECT'S NECK AND THE INTERROGATOR MOTIONED FOR THE SECURITY TEAM TO ROLL IN THE WATER BOARD. SUBJECT WAS MOVED TO AN ADJACENT WALL (TO ALLOW SECURITY TEAM TO ROLL IN BOARD) [REDACTED] AND THEN MOVED TO THE WATER BOARD AT 1123 HOURS. AS THE STRAPS WERE PUT IN PLACE, SUBJECT SAID HE WANTED TO STOP THIS (HIS TREATMENT). THE INTERROGATOR TOLD HIM HE COULD STOP IT AT ANY TIME BY PROVIDING THE INFORMATION SOUGHT, EVEN STARTING WITH JUST ONE PIECE OF THE OPERATION(S). SUBJECT WAS ALSO WARNED NOT TO MAKE UP AN ANSWER. SUBJECT BEGAN TO WHIMPER AND WAS VISIBLY TREMBLING; HE CONTINUED TO DENY HE HAD ANY NEW INFO TO GIVE, [REDACTED] AT 1128 HOURS, THE INTERROGATORS INITIATED THE WATER TREATMENT, WHICH CONTINUED ON AND OFF FOR THE NEXT FEW MINUTES, INTERSPERSED WITH QUESTIONING [REDACTED]

4. THE INTERROGATORS RETURNED TO THE CELL AT 1157 HRS AND NOTED THAT SUBJECT'S DISTRESS LEVEL INCREASED THE MOMENT THE TEAM ENTERED THE CELL, A SIGN THAT THE CONDITIONING STRATEGY WAS WORKING. TO DISRUPT SUBJECT'S EXPECTATIONS, INTERROGATORS IMMEDIATELY BEGAN TO APPLY THE WATER TREATMENT. THE INTERROGATORS AGAIN EXITED THE CELL, AND LEFT THE SUBJECT ON THE TABLE (TO VARY ROUTINE), AGAIN WITH HIS EYES COVERED. THIS ALLOWED ONE OF THE MEDICAL TEAM MEMBERS, DRESSED UP AS A GUARD, TO INSPECT SUBJECT'S LEG WOUND UP CLOSE WITHOUT SUBJECT'S KNOWLEDGE GIVEN THAT WE HAD PASSED THE 72 HOUR MARK SNCE LAST DRESSING CHANGE. THE MEDICAL OFFICER THEN LEFT THE CELL TO BRIEF THE TEAM ON STATUS OF SUBJECT'S WOUND, AND THE TEAM DEVISED A STRATEGY ON HOW BEST TO ACCOMPLISH A DRESSING CHANGE WITHOUT NEGATIVELY IMPACTING THE INTERROGATION STRATEGY. AT 1230 HOURS, THE INTERROGATION TEAM REENTERED THE CELL, AND COVERED SUBJECT'S ENTIRE FACE WITH THE CLOTH, BUT DID NOT APPLY THE TREATMENT. SUBJECT BEGAN MURMURING, SOMETIMES IN ARABIC. THE INTERROGATOR WARNED SUBJECT NOT TO ACT CRAZY LIKE HE DID WHEN THE PAKISTANIS HAD HIM IN CUSTODY (1994). SUBJECT SAID IN ARABIC THAT HE NEEDED OXYGEN (WHEN THE WATER TREATMENT IS APPLIED) AND THEN REPEATED IT IN ENGLISH. SUBJECT CLAIMED THAT HE WAS NOT CRAZY. SUBJECT WAS UNSTRAPPEED FROM THE WATER BOARD AND TOLD TO SIT UP [REDACTED] THEN AS PLANNED WITH THE MEDICAL TEAM MEMBERS, THE INTERROGATOR MADE A REMARK ABOUT THE STATE OF SUBJECT'S WOUND AND REMINDED HIM THAT HE HAD BEEN WARNED NOT TO TEAR OFF THE ORIGINAL BANDAGE THAT HAD BEEN APPLIED WHEN THE AGGRESSIVE INTERROGATION PHASE BEGAN. SUBJECT WAS PUT IN THE LARGE BOX AT 1237 HOURS WITH THE DOOR OPEN. THE INTERROGATORS LEFT THE CELL, AND THE SECURITY TEAM, INCLUDING THE MEDICAL OFFICER STILL DRESSED UP AS A SECURITY TEAM MEMBER, BROUGHT SUBJECT BETADINE AND BANDAGES FOR SUBJECT TO APPLY TO HIS WOUND. ONE INTERROGATOR RETURNED TO INDICATE TO THE SECURITY TEAM TO REMOVE SUBJECT'S HANDCUFFS LONG ENOUGH TO APPLY THE DRESSING. SUBJECT APPLIED THE DRESSING CHANGE, AND AT 1246 HOURS, SECURITY TEAM REATTACHED THE HANDCUFFS AND LOCKED SUBJECT IN THE LARGE BOX, ALONG WITH HIS WASTE BUCKET, AND BOTTLES OF WATER AND ENSURE.

5. IN ORDER TO DISRUPT THE CYCLE OF PLACING SUBJECT IN THE LARGE BOX OVERNIGHT, AS HAD BEEN DONE THE PREVIOUS TWO EVENINGS, THE TEAM CHANGED THE TIMING BY LEAVING SUBJECT IN THE LARGE BOX FOR SEVERAL HOURS DURING THE AFTERNOON, AND AGAIN RESUMED INTERROGATIONS AT 2131 HOURS. RESULTS OF THE 2131 HOURS SESSION WILL BE REPORTED SEPARATELY.

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