{"id":512,"date":"2007-12-13T17:13:00","date_gmt":"2007-12-13T22:13:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blog.minaret.org\/?p=512"},"modified":"2007-12-13T17:25:31","modified_gmt":"2007-12-13T22:25:31","slug":"torture-revisited-%e2%80%93-the-case-of-abu-zubaydah-waterboarding-and-kiriakou","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blog.minaret.org\/?p=512","title":{"rendered":"Torture Revisited \u00e2\u20ac\u201c The Case of Abu Zubaydah, Waterboarding and Kiriakou"},"content":{"rendered":"<div>\n<p style=\"margin: 0in 0in 0pt\" class=\"MsoNormal\"><span style=\"font-family: Arial\"><font size=\"2\">Recently, the Washington Post and CNN  featured stories story summarizing the statements of a former CIA case officer,  John Kiriakou, who claimed waterboarding \u00e2\u20ac\u0153probably saved lives\u00e2\u20ac\u009d, but also said  he believed it constitutes torture and that Americans can \u00e2\u20ac\u0153do  better.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d<\/font><\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"margin: 0in 0in 0pt\" class=\"MsoNormal\">\n<p style=\"margin: 0in 0in 0pt\" class=\"MsoNormal\">\n<p style=\"margin: 0in 0in 0pt\" class=\"MsoNormal\"><span style=\"font-family: Arial\"><font size=\"2\"> <\/font><\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"margin: 0in 0in 0pt\" class=\"MsoNormal\"><span style=\"font-family: Arial\"><font size=\"2\">While it is very pleasing to hear a  former intelligence with field experience like Kiriakou\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s recant his views on  waterboarding, his alleged success story of Abu Zubaydah\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s (AZ) torture doesn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t add up. Before giving a critical scrutiny of his comments, let\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s  provide a summary of his assertions:<\/font><\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"margin: 0in 0in 0pt\" class=\"MsoNormal\">\n<p style=\"margin: 0in 0in 0pt\" class=\"MsoNormal\">\n<p style=\"margin: 0in 0in 0pt\" class=\"MsoNormal\"><span style=\"font-family: Arial\"><font size=\"2\">                         <\/font><\/span><\/p>\n<ul type=\"disc\" style=\"margin-top: 0in\">\n<li style=\"margin: 0in 0in 0pt\" class=\"MsoNormal\"><span style=\"font-family: Arial\"><font size=\"2\">AZ, a \u00e2\u20ac\u0153crucial and highly placed  terrorist\u00e2\u20ac\u009d, was caught in the spring of 2002<\/font><\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"margin: 0in 0in 0pt\" class=\"MsoNormal\"><span style=\"font-family: Arial\"><font size=\"2\">Kiriakou initially tried \u00e2\u20ac\u0153softer\u00e2\u20ac\u009d  approaches to eliciting information from AZ while he was in the hospital,  however he was \u00e2\u20ac\u0153ideologically zealous, defiant and  uncooperative\u00e2\u20ac\u009d<\/font><\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"margin: 0in 0in 0pt\" class=\"MsoNormal\"><span style=\"font-family: Arial\"><font size=\"2\">By mid-summer 2002 he was already moved  to \u00e2\u20ac\u0153a secret CIA prison\u00e2\u20ac\u009d where he was waterboarded<\/font><\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"margin: 0in 0in 0pt\" class=\"MsoNormal\"><span style=\"font-family: Arial\"><font size=\"2\">Within \u00e2\u20ac\u0153about 35 seconds\u00e2\u20ac\u009d of being  waterboarded, Abu Zubaida broke down <\/font><\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"margin: 0in 0in 0pt\" class=\"MsoNormal\"><span style=\"font-family: Arial\"><font size=\"2\">The next day AZ said he would tell them  whatever they wanted. According to Kiriakou\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s account, AZ\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s reason was because  \u00e2\u20ac\u0153\u00e2\u20ac\u00a6Allah had come to him in his cell and told him to cooperate, because it would  make things easier for his brothers\u00e2\u20ac\u009d<\/font><\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"margin: 0in 0in 0pt\" class=\"MsoNormal\"><span style=\"font-family: Arial\"><font size=\"2\">Torture of AZ led to revelations about  the importance of figures such as Khalid Sheikh  Mohammad<\/font><\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p style=\"margin: 0in 0in 0pt\" class=\"MsoNormal\"><span style=\"font-family: Arial\"><font size=\"2\" \/><\/span><\/p>\n<p><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"> <font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"> <font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"> <\/font> <\/font><\/font> <\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/p>\n<p style=\"margin: 0in 0in 0pt\" class=\"MsoNormal\"><span style=\"font-family: Arial\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\">Anyone seriously knowledgeable in Islamic beliefs will look at this collection of assertions and ask &#8220;Was Zubaydah insane, ignorant of Islam, or just trying to pull one over on his tormentors?&#8221; Researchers like  <\/font><a href=\"http:\/\/www.securityaffairs.org\/issues\/2005\/08\/sageman.php\"><font size=\"2\">Marc Sageman<\/font><\/a><font size=\"2\"> find \u00e2\u20ac\u0153terrorists are surprisingly  normal in terms of mental health,\u00e2\u20ac\u009d  so if he is insane,  one must ask if his traumatic interrogation experience drove him that way, or at the very least made him worse if indeed he was unstable prior to his detention. Alternatively, he may not be insane at all but said whatever he thought would stop the torture without regard to its veracity or consistency with Islamic beliefs.<\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/span><\/p>\n<p><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"> <font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"> <\/font> <\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/p>\n<p style=\"margin: 0in 0in 0pt\" class=\"MsoNormal\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"> <\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/p>\n<p><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"> <font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"> <font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"> <\/font> <\/font><\/font> <\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/p>\n<p style=\"margin: 0in 0in 0pt\" class=\"MsoNormal\"><span style=\"font-family: Arial\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"> <\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/span><\/p>\n<p><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"> <font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"> <font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"> <\/font> <\/font><\/font> <\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/p>\n<p style=\"margin: 0in 0in 0pt\" class=\"MsoNormal\">\n<p style=\"margin: 0in 0in 0pt\" class=\"MsoNormal\"><span style=\"font-family: Arial\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\">Based on reporting by independent journalist Ron Suskind in his book, <em><a href=\"http:\/\/www.washingtonpost.com\/wp-dyn\/content\/article\/2006\/06\/19\/AR2006061901211_pf.html\">The  One Percent Doctrine<\/a><\/em>, my guess is that was somewhat mentally unstable before his detention, but made worse after being tortured. In Suskind&#8217;s book, and <\/font><a href=\"http:\/\/www.salon.com\/news\/feature\/2006\/09\/07\/suskind\/print.html\"><font size=\"2\">other interviews<\/font><\/a><font size=\"2\">, he quotes certain intelligence  officials, including a former top FBI Al-Qaeda analyst, saying, \u00e2\u20ac\u0153This guy is  insane, certifiable, split personality.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d This would perhaps put into context a  diary AZ kept for a decade that included entries \u00e2\u20ac\u0153 \u00e2\u20ac\u02dcin the voice[s] of three  people: Hani 1, Hani 2, and Hani 3\u00e2\u20ac\u2122 \u00e2\u20ac\u201c a boy, a young man and a middle-aged alter  ego.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d It would also at least partly explain why Zubaydah allegedly heard God\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s  voice\u00e2\u20ac\u201da delirious-sounding notion at best and blasphemous at worst to Muslims,  especially ultra-conservative <\/font><a href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Salafi\"><font size=\"2\">Salafi\/Wahhabis<\/font><\/a><font size=\"2\"> like Zubaydah. The sheer physical and mental stresses of torture probably drove him to further delusion and is  likely as the other reason for his alleged Divine revelation. <\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Arial\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\">It would also give greater credence to claims by other intelligence officials, cited by Suskind, that Zubaydah was not a high-level operations manager, but a low-level logistics coordinator. It would be an unnecessary and enormous security liability to have a man with mental problems in such an important position.<\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"margin: 0in 0in 0pt\" class=\"MsoNormal\">\n<p><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"> <font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"> <\/font> <\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/p>\n<p style=\"margin: 0in 0in 0pt\" class=\"MsoNormal\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"> <\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/p>\n<p><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"> <font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"> <font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"> <\/font> <\/font><\/font> <\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/p>\n<p style=\"margin: 0in 0in 0pt\" class=\"MsoNormal\"><span style=\"font-family: Arial\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"> <\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/span><\/p>\n<p><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"> <font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"> <font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"> <\/font> <\/font><\/font> <\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/p>\n<p style=\"margin: 0in 0in 0pt\" class=\"MsoNormal\"><span style=\"font-family: Arial\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\">Contrary to research conducted by  <\/font><a href=\"http:\/\/www.au.af.mil\/au\/awc\/awcgate\/jscope\/arrigo03.htm\"><font size=\"2\">academics<\/font><\/a><font size=\"2\"> and the experiences of other <\/font><a href=\"http:\/\/www.cdi.org\/friendlyversion\/printversion.cfm?documentID=3143\"><font size=\"2\">former professional interrogators<\/font><\/a><font size=\"2\">, Kiriakou claims Zubaydah is  an example where torture \u00e2\u20ac\u0153probably saved lives\u00e2\u20ac\u009d by leading to the capture of key  terrorists. With reluctance he stated, &#8220;It was an ugly little episode that was  perhaps necessary at that time. But we&#8217;ve moved beyond that.&#8221; According to  intelligence officials cited by Suskind, under torture AZ gave false confessions  that sent law enforcement officials on wild goose chases, except in one case: he  correctly identified 9\/11 planner Khalid Sheikh Mohammed\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s <\/font><a href=\"http:\/\/mediamatters.org\/items\/200609090002\"><font size=\"2\">moniker<\/font><\/a><font size=\"2\">, \u00e2\u20ac\u0153the brain.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d Kiriakou alleges this piece  of information from AZ was key in KSM\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s eventual arrest.<\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"margin: 0in 0in 0pt\" class=\"MsoNormal\">\n<p><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"> <font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"> <\/font> <\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/p>\n<p style=\"margin: 0in 0in 0pt\" class=\"MsoNormal\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"> <\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/p>\n<p><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"> <font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"> <font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"> <\/font> <\/font><\/font> <\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/p>\n<p style=\"margin: 0in 0in 0pt\" class=\"MsoNormal\"><span style=\"font-family: Arial\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"> <\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/span><\/p>\n<p><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"> <font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"> <font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"> <\/font> <\/font><\/font> <\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/p>\n<p style=\"margin: 0in 0in 0pt\" class=\"MsoNormal\">\n<p style=\"margin: 0in 0in 0pt\" class=\"MsoNormal\">\n<p style=\"margin: 0in 0in 0pt\" class=\"MsoNormal\">\n<p style=\"margin: 0in 0in 0pt\" class=\"MsoNormal\"><span style=\"font-family: Arial\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\">So is this the smoking gun proving that torture works? Not really. <\/font><a href=\"http:\/\/www.washingtonpost.com\/wp-dyn\/content\/article\/2006\/09\/06\/AR2006090602142_pf.html\"><font size=\"2\">According to the 9\/11 Commission report<\/font><\/a><font size=\"2\">, the CIA already  knew KSM\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s codename as early as August 2001, <em>before<\/em> the 9\/11 attacks  occurred and before AZ\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s capture in 2002. This small, redundant piece of  information did little to contribute to KSM\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s capture. The main contributions  came from two <\/font><a href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/HUMINT\"><font size=\"2\">human intelligence<\/font><\/a><font size=\"2\"> sources\u00e2\u20ac\u201dan Al-Qaida defector  lured by a $25 million reward and the help of the Emir of Qatar himself\u00e2\u20ac\u201dand a  <\/font><a href=\"http:\/\/query.nytimes.com\/gst\/fullpage.html?res=9801E6DC133FF937A35750C0A9629C8B63&#038;sec=&#038;spon=&#038;pagewanted=print\"><font size=\"2\">careless trail<\/font><\/a><font size=\"2\"> of Al-Qaida\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s cell phone numbers  and reused Swiss SIM cards that intelligence agencies smartly exploited. Abu Zubaydah\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s confession contributed little, if anything to the success of other counterterrorism operations.<\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"margin: 0in 0in 0pt\" class=\"MsoNormal\">\n<p style=\"margin: 0in 0in 0pt\" class=\"MsoNormal\">\n<p style=\"margin: 0in 0in 0pt\" class=\"MsoNormal\">\n<p style=\"margin: 0in 0in 0pt\" class=\"MsoNormal\">\n<p style=\"margin: 0in 0in 0pt\" class=\"MsoNormal\">\n<p style=\"margin: 0in 0in 0pt\" class=\"MsoNormal\">\n<p style=\"margin: 0in 0in 0pt\" class=\"MsoNormal\">\n<p style=\"margin: 0in 0in 0pt\" class=\"MsoNormal\">\n<p style=\"margin: 0in 0in 0pt\" class=\"MsoNormal\">\n<p style=\"margin: 0in 0in 0pt\" class=\"MsoNormal\">\n<p style=\"margin: 0in 0in 0pt\" class=\"MsoNormal\">\n<p style=\"margin: 0in 0in 0pt\" class=\"MsoNormal\"><span style=\"font-family: Arial\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><br \/>\nI wholeheartedly agree with Kiriakou that waterboarding is torture and immoral, but vehemently disagree that it was ever necessary or that ever worked in this case. Waterboarding and all other forms of torture are just plain morally and tactically bankrupt. Indeed, America can do better.<\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"margin: 0in 0in 0pt\" class=\"MsoNormal\">\n<p style=\"margin: 0in 0in 0pt\" class=\"MsoNormal\"><span style=\"font-family: Arial\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><br \/>\nAllahu &#8216;Alim.<br \/>\n<\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"margin: 0in 0in 0pt\" class=\"MsoNormal\">\n<p style=\"margin: 0in 0in 0pt\" class=\"MsoNormal\"><span style=\"font-family: Arial\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\">[My thanks to Dr. Imad-ad-Dean Ahmad for conversations and suggestions that contributed substantially to this article.]<\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"margin: 0in 0in 0pt\" class=\"MsoNormal\">\n<p style=\"margin: 0in 0in 0pt\" class=\"MsoNormal\"><span style=\"font-family: Arial\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"> <\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/span><\/p>\n<p><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"> <font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"> <font size=\"2\"> <\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/div>\n<p><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"> <font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"> <font size=\"2\"> <\/font> <\/font> <\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/p>\n<div><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\" face=\"Arial\" \/><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/p>\n<div><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\" face=\"Arial\"><font size=\"2\" face=\"Arial\">Alejandro J. Beutel<\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/div>\n<div><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\" face=\"Arial\"><font size=\"2\" face=\"Arial\">Minaret of Freedom Institute<\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/div>\n<div><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\" face=\"Arial\"><font size=\"2\" face=\"Arial\"><span class=\"677172215-10102007\" \/><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\"><font size=\"2\" face=\"Arial\"><font size=\"2\" face=\"Arial\"><a href=\"http:\/\/www.minaret.org\/\">www.minaret.org<\/a><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Recently, the Washington Post and CNN featured stories story summarizing the statements of a former CIA case officer, John Kiriakou, who claimed waterboarding \u00e2\u20ac\u0153probably saved lives\u00e2\u20ac\u009d, but also said he believed it constitutes torture and that Americans can \u00e2\u20ac\u0153do better.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d While it is very pleasing to hear a former intelligence with field experience like Kiriakou\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[11],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-512","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-alejandros-blog"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.minaret.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/512","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.minaret.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.minaret.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.minaret.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.minaret.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=512"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/blog.minaret.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/512\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.minaret.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=512"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.minaret.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=512"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.minaret.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=512"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}