FaceandBBC
Anti Foid
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Through his original illustrations and accompanying descriptions published in this report, Mr. Abu Zubaydah memorializes his experience and the experiences of other Guantanamo (“GTMO”) prisoners. His illustrations—the last surviving visual representations of America’s torture program—bring to life what the CIA and FBI hoped to keep buried. Expanding on the foundation laid in How America Tortures, this report shows how the torturers tortured and just how far they strayed from the techniques that were officially authorized.
The historical significance of Mr. Abu Zubaydah’s illustrations in documenting the torture of GTMO prisoners cannot be overstated. As the CIA’s first victim, Mr. Abu Zubaydah serves as the premiere witness for the implementation of both the approved and unapproved torture techniques. His detailed, disturbing recollection of the trauma he endured as the first victim is remarkably and unmistakably authentic. In fact, Mr. Abu Zubaydah’s depictions are so realistic that the faces of his abusers have been redacted to protect their identity. In almost every drawing, a black box replaces the face of one or more of those responsible for the repeated and unrelenting torture of Mr. Abu Zubaydah and the other GTMO prisoners.
The redactions of Mr. Abu Zubaydah’s drawings are not the first attempt to conceal the evidence surrounding his years spent in CIA and FBI custody. As this report will detail, Abu Zubaydah spent his time in CIA and FBI custody viciously beaten, repeatedly drowned, and endlessly abused. In several drawings, Mr. Abu Zubaydah prominently places multiple video cameras recording this violence. Regrettably, the tapes from those cameras no longer exist, and other drawings representing this torture were never declassified. The events contained within those tapes are so horrific that the CIA intentionally violated a federal court order by destroying all video evidence of their commission. Of the video evidence destroyed, there were at least ninety-two tapes—ninety of which related to interrogations of Abu Zubaydah.
The historical significance of Mr. Abu Zubaydah’s illustrations in documenting the torture of GTMO prisoners cannot be overstated. As the CIA’s first victim, Mr. Abu Zubaydah serves as the premiere witness for the implementation of both the approved and unapproved torture techniques. His detailed, disturbing recollection of the trauma he endured as the first victim is remarkably and unmistakably authentic. In fact, Mr. Abu Zubaydah’s depictions are so realistic that the faces of his abusers have been redacted to protect their identity. In almost every drawing, a black box replaces the face of one or more of those responsible for the repeated and unrelenting torture of Mr. Abu Zubaydah and the other GTMO prisoners.
The redactions of Mr. Abu Zubaydah’s drawings are not the first attempt to conceal the evidence surrounding his years spent in CIA and FBI custody. As this report will detail, Abu Zubaydah spent his time in CIA and FBI custody viciously beaten, repeatedly drowned, and endlessly abused. In several drawings, Mr. Abu Zubaydah prominently places multiple video cameras recording this violence. Regrettably, the tapes from those cameras no longer exist, and other drawings representing this torture were never declassified. The events contained within those tapes are so horrific that the CIA intentionally violated a federal court order by destroying all video evidence of their commission. Of the video evidence destroyed, there were at least ninety-two tapes—ninety of which related to interrogations of Abu Zubaydah.
