After September 11, 2001, U.S. officials authorized the cruel treatment and torture of prisoners held in Afghanistan, Iraq, Guantanamo, and the CIA's secret prisons overseas.

This database documents the U.S. government's official experiment with torture. At present, the database contains well over 100,000 pages of government documents obtained primarily through Freedom of Information Act litigation and requests filed by the ACLU, and through litigation of Salim v. Mitchell, a lawsuit brought by the ACLU on behalf of the survivors and the family of a dead victim of the CIA torture program. To learn more about the database, please read the About and Search Help pages. If you're a developer, you can also access this data through our API.

Search Result (6709)

RelevanceDateRelease Date
Mar. 18, 2002 | Non-US | ACLU-RDI 4706
This fax cover sheet is from the Foreign & Commonwealth Office - British Embassy, Washington sent by Robert Macaire to John Bellinger with the message:"I attach a copy of an internal record of the unsuccesa(ul application for judicial review of ...
June 08, 2005
Letter
Robert Macaire
John Bellinger
John B. Bellinger, III, Jonathan B. Schwartz, Pierre-Richard Prosper, Bruce Swartz
Oct. 23, 2002 | WH | ACLU-RDI 4707
White House Cover Sheet re: Routing and Transmittal Slip. No additional in formation or comments.
Nov. 13, 2001 | DOS | ACLU-RDI 4703
This State Department Fact Sheet on the President's establishment of Military Commissions lists talking points on addressing issues and questions that might arise. The points highlight the following: i) The Order applies only to non-U.S. ...
June 08, 2005
Non-legal Memo
George W. Bush, Donald H. Rumsfeld
Nov. 13, 2001 | WH | ACLU-RDI 4704
Presidential Military Order concerning the Detention, Treatment and Trial of Certain Non-Citizens in the War against Terrorism. The Order is the basis for the authority to apprehend, detain and place on trial via Military Commissions persons who ...
June 08, 2005
Non-legal Memo
George W. Bush
George W. Bush, Donald H. Rumsfeld
Mar. 19, 2003 | DOS | ACLU-RDI 4700
State Department cable stating that the U.S. has come to an agreement to return five (5) Guantanamo detainees back to their home country. The agreement includes assurances from the receiving country that the detainees will receive humane ...
June 08, 2005
Cable
Colin L. Powell
Colin L. Powell, Ronald W. Miller, Pierre-Richard Prosper
Mar. 10, 2004 | DOS | ACLU-RDI 4701
State Department email forwarded by JoAnn Dolan from Robert Harris concerning Human Rights Watch report critical of U.S. Action in Afghanistan. Mr. Harris' email has the comment "Human Rights Watch in the past few days issued a highly critical ...
May 04, 2005
Email
JoAnn J. Dolan
Eliana Davidson | Laura Parsky | David Nahmias | Patrick Philbin | Chuck Allen | Karen Hecker
JoAnn J. Dolan, Robert K. Harris, Michael G. Kozak, Mark P. Lagon, Thomas A. Johnson, Joshua L. Dorosin, Lynn M. Sicade, Charles A. Allen, Eliana Davidson, Karen L. Hecker, John B. Wiegmann, Laura H. Parsky, James A. McAtamney, David E. Nahmias, Patrick Philbin, Ronald W. Miller, Jennifer Koester, John B. Bellinger, III, Jack L. Goldsmith, William Howard Taft, IV, Steven A. Solomon, Michael T. Peay
June 08, 2005 | DOS | ACLU-RDI 4702
Letter from Margaret P. Grafeld, DOS to Amrit Singh, ACLU re: the ACLU's FOIA Request. Letter states that the document production requested is being complied with in some parts and denied or withheld in part.
June 08, 2005
Letter, Judicial
Margaret P. Grafeld
Margaret P. Grafeld
Feb. 24, 2004 | EOP | ACLU-RDI 4697
White House memo from Alberto R. Gonzalez, Counsel to the President, concerning detention Issues in the War on Terrorism.
May 04, 2005
Non-legal Memo
Alberto Gonzalez
George W. Bush
George W. Bush, Alberto R. Gonzales, Donald H. Rumsfeld
Yaser Esam Hamdi, Jose Padilla
June 08, 2005 | DOS | ACLU-RDI 4698
Letter from Margaret P. Grafeld, DOS to Amrit Singh, ACLU re: the ACLU's FOIA Request. Letter states that the document production requested is being complied with in some parts and denied or withheld in part.
June 08, 2005
Letter, Judicial
Margaret P. Grafeld
Margaret P. Grafeld
Mar. 18, 2003 | DOS | ACLU-RDI 4699
This memo is to address questions and concerns over the status and treatment of Guantanamo detainees. The memo states that: 1) the U.S. does not permit, tolerate or condone torture; 2) Detainees get excellent medical care; 3) the Al-Qaeda ...
June 08, 2005
Cable
Colin L. Powell
Colin L. Powell, George W. Bush