Testimony of a Private Interrogator

MEMORANDUM FOR THE RECORD

Date: 4/2[5]/2003
To: [REDACTED]
From: [REDACTED]
RE: Incident on 22APR03

The following incident took place on 22 April 2003 at Camp Delta, GTMO. At approximately 2030 hours [REDACTED] and I were in Monitoring Room 5 in Gold Building observing the approach technique of [REDACTED] a fellow interrogator. [REDACTED] was interrogating in Interrogation Room 4. Monitoring Room 5 overlooks both Interrogation Room 4 and Interrogation room [ILLEGIBLE]. At this time there was an interrogation of another detainee taking place in Interrogation Room 5. [REDACTED] and a young Navy analyst whose name I do not recall were also in Monitoring Room 5 observing this interrogation. In  Interrogation Room [ILLEGIBLE] I saw [REDACTED] a military linguist, two detainee escorts, and a detainee. The detainee was standing a little back from center of the room. [REDACTED] was in front of the detainee. The two escorts were on either side of the detainee holding the detainee by his upper arms. The linguist was standing in back of the detainee. The two analysts in the monitoring room had a speaker plugged into the audio output from the room [ILLEGIBLE] and [REDACTED]. I had only one earpiece in so that I could translate the Arabic [REDACTED] was speaking to [REDACTED] who does not speak Arabic. Over the speaker that [REDACTED] and the other analyst were using I could hear [REDACTED] becoming louder and louder in his interrogation. [REDACTED] was repeating the same question, "What were you doing in Pakistan?" to the detainee. The detainee in my opinion seemed incoherent. (Note: As an interrogator, I have seen detainees feign incoherence to avoid interrogation, but such was not the case here in my estimation) [REDACTED] was repeating the question over and over, in rapid fire fashion, so quickly that the interpreter was not keeping up with the questioning and the detainee would not have been able to answer without interrupting. [REDACTED] then shouted "DOWN" and the two detainee escorts pushed the detainee to the floor. When I say pushed to the floor I mean they pushed in the back of the detainee's knees with their knees, taking the detainee to his knees. Then holding the detainee by his upper arms they slammed his upper body to the floor. This series of motions was all done in one swift movement, so that the detainee went from a standing position to a prone position all at once. The force with which the detainee's body hit the floor was such that [REDACTED]. [REDACTED] was interrogating immediately before the detainee was pushed to the floor. [REDACTED] and the Navy analyst were laughing about treatment of the detainee. The detainee was slammed to the floor in this manner seven to eight times. [REDACTED] would yell "DOWN" immediately preceding each time the detainee was slammed to the floor. After the first two slams I took out my earpiece and observed the happenings in Room [ILLEGIBLE]. [REDACTED] was once again asking the detainee "What were you doing in Pakistan?" When, after 6 to 10 minutes of this impossible-to-answer, rapid fire questioning the detainee would not answer, [REDACTED] shouted "DOWN," and the slamming process took place approximately ten to twelve more times. The detainee was being slammed to the floor so hard that I was concerned for his safety. The force with which the detainee hit the floor was, in my estimation, adequate to cause severe internal injury. I left the monitoring room, along with [REDACTED] to call my supervisor and report this incident. As we left, I could hear [REDACTED] shouting "DOWN" and I also heard immediately following each "DOWN" noises consistent with the sound that was made when the detainee was slammed to the floor. I heard this combination of shouts and thuds six to seven more times as I exited the building. [REDACTED] and [REDACTED] remained at Gold Building while I went to make the phone calls. When I arrived at Building [ILLEGIBLE], I attempted to call my supervisor [REDACTED] but got no answer. I then walked back down to Gold Building where [REDACTED] gave me the number to call [REDACTED] I told [REDACTED] that there were things going on at the Camp that could adversely affect the mission and that I needed his guidance on how to proceed. [REDACTED] told me he would come to Camp Delta along with [REDACTED] and discuss the matter. While waiting for them to arrive I spoke with [REDACTED] who was now at Building 5. [REDACTED] had apparently been told that I was reporting his conduct to my supervisor. I had a conference with [REDACTED] which lasted approximately ten minutes during which [REDACTED] tried to convince me that what he had done was proper. He told me that when the guards were taking the detainee to the floor they were, at the very last second, pulling up on his arms to lessen the impact, and that the loud sounds I heard were only boots being stomped on the floor. I told [REDACTED] that as an experienced interrogator, who had been trained by and served in the US Army, I had never seen in F[ield]M[anual] [sections] 34-52 any section describing or prescribing what he had done to the detainee. [REDACTED] told me that he had been called in to run this approach on this detainee because the interrogator responsible for this detainee had run "every approach, A to Z, and had gotten nowhere". I told him that I thought he had jeopardized the mission and that most likely whoever interrogated that source would have to undo the damage he had done. I left the office were we had been talking and walked outside where I found [REDACTED] and [REDACTED] to whom I recounted what I had seen.

The personnel I could not identify by name, I would be able to identify by sight.

/signed

INTERROGATOR, ACS Defense

 Get original here [taken from Captured in Tape, Seton Hall]

NOTE: See also Testimony of a Private Analyst