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 (81)

Investigation of photographs taken of a hooded and flexcuffed detainee in a stress position with a U.S. soldier simulating sodomy on him with a broomstick. Investigation shows that the detainees were not put into the stress positions for reasons ...
May 16, 2005
Investigative File (AR 15-6)
Physical assault, Sexual, Stress positions, Other Humiliation, Sexual
This letter is from Shafiq Rasul and Asif Iqbal, two former Guantanamo detainees. The letter is on the letterhead of the Centre for Constitutional Rights and states that
Court Martial Records of SPC Megan Ambuhl, who did not participate in abuse of detainees, but pled guilty to Dereliction of Duty for not reporting the activities of MP and MI personnel at Abu Ghraib Prison. She was sentenced to forfeiture of 1/2 ...
In October 2003, Specialist Cruz participated in the abuse of detainees in the Hard Site at Abu Ghraib. Spc. Cruz and others ordered three (3) detainees to strip naked. The detainees were handcuffed together with metal handcuffs "to mess with ...
Apr. 06, 2005
UCMJ (Court-Martial), Judicial (Transcript)
Armin J. Cruz
Use of water, Water dousing, Physical assault, Face slap or insult slap, Sexual, General, Stress positions, Use of phobias, Nudity, Other Humiliation, Sexual, Forced physical training
This document is the condensed notes of an interview of at Screener in Abu Ghraib Prison from Mid-December 2003 through January 2004. The interview is a verbatim rendition of the Screener’s statement and it is noted that the statement is to be ...
Mar. 03, 2005
Interview (Statement, Summaries/Notes)
George R. Fay
Use of water, Other, Physical assault, Walling, Sexual, General, Use of electricity, Stress positions, Use of phobias, Sleep deprivation, Isolation, Nudity, Other Humiliation, Sexual, Religious, Other
Contract interrogator from CACI assigned to Abu Ghraib from November 23, 2003 to the end of January 2004. The Interrogator stated "I never personally used or saw dogs being used in interrogations. My impression was that the dogs were used as an ...
This is a sworn statement from a CACI civilian contractor assigned to Abu Ghraib prison in early October 2003 as an “on-site manager” of CACI employees, and as an interrogator himself. He described his understanding on how to treat detainees and ...
Mar. 03, 2005
Interview (Statement)
Thomas Pappas
Physical assault, Stress positions, Use of phobias, Nudity
Unknown interviewee provided a sworn statement in which he/she recalled incidents that took place at AG. The interviewee reported only overhearing things, not actually observing anything. Recalled a woman, a National Guard who recounted numerous ...
Mar. 03, 2005
Interview (Statement)
Physical assault, General, Stress positions, Use of phobias, Isolation, Nudity, Other Humiliation, Sexual, Forced physical training, Other
Sworn Statement of a Sergeant assigned to Abu Ghraib prison. The Sgt. recalled finding a detainee naked in their cell, the detainee was identified as a high level official. Recalled the detainee was embarrassed about being naked in the cell ...
Mar. 03, 2005
Interview (Statement)
Thomas Pappas
Physical assault, General, Stress positions, Sleep deprivation, Isolation, Nudity
Memo is an interview-statements regarding conditions in AG. Interviewee recalled finding a detainee naked in their cell, the detainee was identified as a high level official. Recalled the detainee was embarrassed about being naked in the cell ...
Mar. 03, 2005
Non-legal Memo, Interview (Summaries/Notes)
Thomas Pappas
Physical assault, General, Stress positions, Sleep deprivation, Isolation, Nudity