Reason
by Julian Sanchez

11/18/05

The man with graying hair had 'blunt force injuries complicated by compromised respiration,' the result of a synthetic hood placed over his head during interrogation by Navy Seals and 'Other Government Agency,' which typically means the CIA. The obese 56-year-old died of 'asphyxia due to smothering and chest compression;' the circumstances surrounding his death are classified. The 47-year-old died gagged and shackled to a door frame; his autopsy revealed numerous rib fractures and lung contusions. These are a few of the findings from 44 reports of autopsies on U.S. detainees in Iraq and Afghanistan, obtained by the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) last month under a Freedom of Information Act lawsuit. Eight of the 21 deaths classed as homicides, the ACLU concluded, appeared to have resulted from abusive interrogation tactics, with strangulation, asphyxiation, and blunt force injuries listed as causes of death. Because the documents sought by the ACLU are trickling out slowly, month by month, it is unclear how many more such reports remain to be uncovered...

http://www.reason.com/links/links111805.shtml


Informant: Thomas L. Knapp