The CIA's Kidnapping Ring (Hentoff in VV)

[struggle4progress]

U.S. ally Uzbekistan teaches interrogators how to boil suspected terrorists to death

by Nat Hentoff
April 15th, 2005 1:13 PM

<snip> Question: "As commander in chief, what is it that Uzbekistan can do in interrogating an individual that the United States can't?"

George W. Bush repeated his talking point: "We seek assurances that nobody will be tortured."

Actually, there is much that U.S. interrogators can learn from their counterparts in Uzbekistan on how to break down prisoners. One of the CIA's jet planes used to render purported terrorists to other countries—where information is extracted by any means necessary—made 10 trips to Uzbekistan. In a segment of CBS's 60 Minutes on these CIA torture missions (March 5), former British ambassador to Uzbekistan Craig Murray told of the range of advanced techniques used by Uzbek interrogators:

"drowning and suffocation, rape was used . . . and also immersion of limbs in boiling liquid."

Two nights later on ABC's World News Tonight, Craig Murray told of photos he received of an Uzbek interrogation that ended with the prisoner actually being boiled to death! <snip>

http://www.villagevoice.com/news/0516,hentoff,63104,6.html

Most of this won't be new to DUers -- but it's short and the quotes are documented, well-organized, and interesting ...

[MissMarple]

1. This is evil. I think I'm going to be sick.

I just have no words for this.

[Daphne08]

2. That's medieval!

[bobthedrummer]

3. It isn't news anymore, it's policy.

:puke::argh:

[LibertyorDeath]

4. Bush and Islam Karimov Dictator Who Boils People Alive

Gen. Franks and Karimov

Rumsfeld and Karimov



Independent human rights groups estimate that there are more than 600 politically motivated arrests a year in Uzbekistan, and 6,500 political prisoners, some tortured to death. According to a forensic report commissioned by the British embassy, in August two prisoners were even boiled to death.

The US condemned this repression for many years. But since September 11 rewrote America's strategic interests in central Asia, the government of President Islam Karimov has become Washington's new best friend in the region.
Powell and Karimov




Much more
http://www.thememoryhole.org/pol/us-and-uz.htm

[LibertyorDeath]

5. Profile of President Islam Karimov

To the rest of the World he is a brutal homicidal nutjob Dictator.

To the Bush admin he's a friend.

From Human Rights Watch
http://www.hrw.org/press/2002/03/karimovprof.htm

In His Own Words

"The OSCE focuses only on establishment of democracy, the protection of human rights and the freedom of the press. I am now questioning these values." - President Karimov, after the OSCE criticized the 1999 parliamentary elections. Agence France-Presse, January 8, 2000.

"Such people must be shot in the forehead! If necessary, I'll shoot them myself…!" - President Karimov, upon the 1998 adoption of a highly restrictive religion law, warning parliament not to be soft on "Islamic extremists." Many peaceful Muslims have also been rounded up in the sweeps of "fundamentalists." BBC Monitoring report of Uzbek Radio second program, May 1, 1998.

"I'm prepared to rip off the heads of 200 people, to sacrifice their lives, in order to save peace and calm in the republic…If my child chose such a path, I myself would rip off his head." - President Karimov reacting to acts of violence in Uzbekistan in March 1999. The government originally blamed the incidents, including a bus hijacking, on "criminals" and later on "Islamic extremists." Agence France-Presse, April 2, 1999.