| Fbi complaied about cia torture of alqaeda prisoners { May 13 2004 } Original Source Link: (May no longer be active) http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,1-1108565,00.htmlhttp://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,1-1108565,00.html
May 13, 2004
FBI 'complained about CIA torture of al-Qaeda prisoners' BY AGENCIES AND TIMES ONLINE FBI officials are so concerned at interrogation techniques being used by the CIA on al-Qaeda detainees that they have advised their agents not to take part in many of the interviews, it was reported today.
The methods, which were authorised by the US Justice Department after the 9/11 attacks, include a technique known as "water boarding", in which a prisoner is strapped down, forcibly pushed under water and made to believe he might drown, The New York Times reported today.
Concern is also growing among CIA officers about the consequences of their actions.
"Some people involved in this have been concerned for quite a while that eventually there would be a new President, or the mood in the country would change, and they would be held accountable," one intelligence source told the newspaper. "Now that's happening faster than anybody expected."
The revelation is an unwelcome additional pressure for the US military and security forces, which are facing a major scandal over abuse of prisoners in Iraq. An investigation over prisoner abuse by US forces has also begun in Afghanistan.
The CIA is reportedly concerned that the inquiries into the abuses may lead to examinations of the agency's handling of the al-Qaeda detainees.
The CIA has a secret detention system for around 12 to 20 top al-Qaeda leaders and operatives, according to US officials. Some are under direct US control, while others are ostensibly under the supervision of foreign governments.
Their whereabouts are so closely guarded that one official said President Bush had informed the CIA he did not want to know where they were.
Defenders of the operation said the methods stopped short of torture, did not violate American anti-torture statutes, and were necessary to fight a war against a nebulous enemy whose strength and intentions could only be gleaned by extracting information from often uncooperative detainees. Interrogators were trying to find out whether there might be another attack planned against the United States.
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