Abdenour Sameur: Allegations of Abuse

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Board Member: Why do you feel you have the right to lie to the interrogators?

Detainee (through translator): They were lying to us. They were not telling us truthful stories. I was lying so that I can get my medical (treatment). They use interrogations when they are trying to treat somebody. Whenever the interrogator comes to see me he tells me to give him information and he will treat me. I was injured in both of my legs.

Board Member: So you have not been getting treatment?

Detainee (through translator): I am an enemy, how can you treat me?

Presiding Officer: So the only time you lied was during the time you were injured many years ago?

Page 2493

Detainee (through translator): Every interrogation that I have gone to I had to lie, because that was the only way I could get medical attention. That’s why I kept lying. Every time I spoke with them, I lied. If I told them that I was innocent, they would not hear of it, they would have nothing to do with it. They would torture me. They torture me psychologically.

Presiding Officer: When was the last time you felt you were tortured psychologically?

Detainee (through translator): In the past four years.

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Designated Military Officer: (4.a) The detainee stated that he never went to al Farouq Camp, and that this information was provided to interrogators so that he could obtain medical attention for his legs.

Detainee (through translator): That’s correct and this way I would escape the torture. When you tell the interrogators that I went there did this and that, they are so happy they can now fill up their files. So I gave them false information.

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Detainee (through translator): <…> I did not do anything bad, the majority of the people/the detainees that you have in the camp here are innocent and they are treated like dogs. You did not catch us in Pakistan, we were sold in Pakistan. The Pakistani Army was very poor, that's why they were selling us to you. They even took some people from their wives and their families to sell to the Americans [. T]hey took them from the hotels, the streets and the houses and said they were terrorists because they wanted to get the money. America was giving them money, each time they said this guy is a terrorist, they would just give them money.

The majority of the people here have nothing against the Americans. People that I have spoken to all say they were only there (Afghanistan) for three to six months. If you have any evidence to prove that I have killed somebody, then present this evidence. Don't bring lies and tell me these allegations. Bring me this evidence, take me to court and see if you can prove that I am guilty. All the years that I have spent here and you cannot figure out whether I am a terrorist, a fighter, Mujahedin or whatever. I gave you my entire life history in Britain and in Algeria and you have never come up with one solid piece of evidence against me. You keep me here and treat me like a dog, that's the way you treat everybody else.

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You (Americans) are my enemy; I am not your enemy because I have done nothing to you. You are the one who imprisoned me and I have done nothing, you are just trying to gather infromation any[ ]way that you can and any country can do that, but not for four years with the same thing back and forth and under these living conditions. Four years I have been in this prison here [. W]hy haven't you arrived at a decision? You keep saying that you are going to make a decision or make a recommendation but what you are doing here is wasting our time, we have spent four years here and nothing has happened. You cannot even bring out any truthful information because you do not have any, everybody makes up these statements and you ask us about it. If I was living in the guest house it was because I did not have any money and things like that, but you say I was trained there.

Anything I tell you, you will find some type of excuse to justify that I am a terrorist. Anything I tell you, you will come up with something like I am doing this or doing that. I am not the only one lying; the other detainee’s <sic> are lying to the interrogators as well. Since they deceive us we try to deceive them as well. They also lie and torture us. They were giving me some kind of medical pills, but the interrogators stopped it. Every time they get a new interrogator the interrogator stops it, if we are on any medication he will tell whoever is in charge not to give us the medication. In the past, if we were sick the doctors will call the interrogator and ask him if they should give us any medication. About two days after the doctors talk to the interrogators about giving us medication the interrogator will visit the detainee and ask him how he feels and if everything is alright. He will then ask if we need medication and if the detainee says yes he needs the medication the interrogator will tell the detainee why don’t you answer some of these questions for me. Since they caught us, we have been in the same scenario, they have lied to us and we have lied to them.

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Presiding Officer: Do you feel you have been compliant?

Detainee (through translator): Who treats me good, I treat them good. Who treats me like a dog I give them the same treatment.

Presiding Officer: Have you ever thrown anything at a guard?

Detainee (through translator): Yes, I threw feces and I have spit on them

Presiding Officer: Why did you do that?

Detainee (through translator): They were trying to psychologically work me up. You already know this information because it is already in my file.

Presiding Officer: I wanted to hear it from you.

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Detainee (through translator): If you treat me like a dog then I will treat you like a dog. There are some soldiers that I joke around with and things like that and there are some people that treat me like dirt. This is true in every society and country you will find the good and the bad.

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