US dismayed by UK disclosure of torture details of Ethiopian-born detainee, Binyam Mohamed

US dismayed by UK disclosure of torture details

Press TV, Thu, 11 Feb 2010 20:39:13 GMT

Washington says a UK court decision to reveal data related to the torture of former Guantanamo detainee Binyam Mohamed is going to harm relations between the US and Britain

We're deeply disappointed with the court's judgment because we shared this information in confidence and with certain expectations, "said Ben LaBolt, a spokesman for President Barack Obama, on Wednesda.

LaBolt added that the decision by the UK court would "complicate" intelligence sharing, BBC reported.

"As we warned, the court's judgment will complicate the confidentiality of our intelligence-sharing relationship with the UK, and it will have to factor into our decision-making going forward."

The British Foreign Secretary David Miliband lost an Appeal Court and failed to suppress the documents, which showed MI5 knew about the treatment of Mohamed.

A political fury followed the release of a seven-paragraph summary of the US' ill-treatment of Mohamed.

Branches of the British government are accused of systematically covering up their involvement in the torture of terrorism suspects.

Ethiopian-born Binyam Mohamed, 31, who came to Britain in 1994 seeking asylum from Ethiopia, spent nearly seven years in US custody or in countries taking part in the US-run rendition program of terror suspects.

After a lengthy campaign by his supporters, he became the first prisoner to be released from Guantanamo Bay and returned to Britain in February last year.

UK details US torture of Ethiopian-born detainee

Press TV, Wed, 10 Feb 2010 19:07:07 GMT

The British government has been ordered to publish previously secret information about the alleged torture of former British detainee Binyam Mohamed by US authorities.

The information released shows that Britain was aware of allegations that Binyam Mohamed was being tortured while in US custody after his arrest in Pakistan in 2002.

Britain had wanted to keep the information secret, saying that revealing it would have harmed its relationship with the United States.

However, Britain's Court of Appeals ruled that the seven paragraphs about Mohamed must be released.

The texts say that Mohamed was subjected to continuous sleep deprivation as well as being threatened.

His fears of being removed from US custody and 'disappearing' were played upon, the newly released information said.

Ethiopia-born Mohamed was kept under self-harm observation and “the interviews were having a marked effect on him and causing him significant mental stress and suffering.”

"Although it is not necessary for us to categorize the treatment reported, it could readily be contended to be at the very least cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment by the United States authorities," the text said.

After being held in US custody for seven years, Mohamed returned to Britain once all the charges were dropped against him in February of 2009.

Following Mohamed's arrest in Pakistan, he was moved to Morocco, were he was interrogated by US authorities, said Reprieve, a legal charity that has taken on Mohamed's case.

According to Reprieve, the British government knew Mohamed was in Morocco and that US authorities were interrogating him.

"During his time in Morocco, Binyam was subject to really medieval torture, among other horrors, a razor blade was regularly taken to his genitals," Reprieve said.

After spending a year and a half in Morocco, Mohamed was taken to a prison in Afghanistan and kept in complete darkness and tortured for another six months before being taken to Guantanamo Bay, Reprieve said. He remained in captivity there for an additional four years.

Mohamed explained that the “dark prison” in Afghanistan resembled a medieval dungeon with loud music and noise 24 hours a day.

"It was pitch black, no lights on in the rooms for most of the time," he has said. "They hung me up for two days. My legs had swollen. My wrists and hands had gone numb. There was loud music, Slim Shady (by Eminem) and Dr. Dre for 20 days. Then they changed the sounds to horrible ghost laughter and Halloween sounds.”

"At one point, I was chained to the rails for a fortnight. The CIA worked on people, including me, day and night. Plenty [of the detainees] lost their minds. I could hear people knocking their heads against the walls and the doors, screaming their heads off," he said.

British Foreign Secretary David Miliband said it was disclosing the information because it had already been put into the public domain by the decision of a US court in another case.

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