Following a shocking report released by the Senate Intelligence Committee on the CIA’s interrogation techniques under former President George W. Bush, a U.N. special investigator is calling for the prosecution of the U.S. officials who authorized the brutality.
Yesterday’s report revealed a bevy of flaws and missteps on the CIA’s part — they deployed torture tactics more brutal than originally reported, the committee said tactics weren’t as effective as reported, and none of those tactics delivered “ticking bomb information,” or information that prevented another terrorist attack.
Now, the U.N. is demanding the CIA take responsibility.
According to the Associated Press:
Ben Emmerson, the U.N.’s special rapporteur on counterterrorism and human rights, said in addition that all CIA and other U.S. officials who used waterboarding and other torture techniques must be prosecuted.
He said the Senate Intelligence Committee report on the CIA’s harsh interrogation techniques at secret overseas facilities after the 9/11 terror attacks shows “there was a clear policy orchestrated at a high level within the Bush administration, which allowed to commit systematic crimes and gross violations of international human rights law.”
“The individuals responsible for the criminal conspiracy … must be brought to justice, and must face criminal penalties commensurate with the gravity of their crimes,” Emmerson said. “The fact that the policies revealed in this report were authorized at a high level within the U.S. government provides no excuse whatsoever. Indeed, it reinforces the need for criminal accountability.”
On Tuesday, President Obama addressed the report, saying the torture techniques “did significant damage to America’s standing in the world and made it harder to pursue our interests with allies.” During his time in office, Obama banned waterboarding, but other aspects of Bush’s security policies remain, including the U.S. detention center at Guantanamo Bay.
The Department of Justice is not expected to initiate charges against CIA officials involved in the approval of interrogation techniques.
But despite the U.N.’s call to prosecute and President Obama’s sentiments on the torture report (which included a detailed description of brutal techniques including “rectal feeding”) at least a few people are OK with the CIA waterboarding detainees until they’re nearly dead.
The good folks over at Fox News. Are you surprised?
Check out this clip about how awesome America is, even when it’s revealed that the CIA pushed hummus into detainees’ rectums, made them stand on broken feet and killed one, all in the name of “information” to thwart “terrorists.”
Yeah, OK.
SOURE: AP/ABC | VIDEO SOURCE: News Inc.
