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)

No relevant text.
Nov. 23, 2004
Letter
Other
Photographs are indiscernible.
Nov. 23, 2004
Photograph
Frank E. Schmelzer
Note cover sheet with handwritten notation. No relevant text.
Nov. 23, 2004
Notes
Colin L. Powell
William Howard Taft, IV
William Howard Taft, IV, Frank E. Schmelzer , Colin L. Powell

Interview of Colin L. Powell regarding the U.S. decision to deny detainees at Guantanamo prisoner of war status. Mr. Powell explains the U.S. government's rationale and explains that by definition detained Taliban and Al-Qaida personnel are ...

Dec. 02, 2004
Interview (Questionnaire)
Colin L. Powell, Sharon E. Ahmad
This letter is from Paula J. Dobriansky, State Department Under Secretary for Global Affairs to Sen. Bingaman (D-NM) responding to the Senator’s recent letter raising concerns over an article in the Washington Post concerning allegations of ...
Dec. 02, 2004
Letter
Paula Dobriansky
Jeff Bingaman | Charles E. Grassley
Paula J. Dobriansky, Jesse Francis Bingaman, Jr., Charles E. Grassley
This letter from Amb. Prosper to an un-named person is a response to a letter the recipient sent to Pres. Bush concerning the legal status of the detainees at Guantanamo. The letter states "Under international law the detainees at Guantanamo are ...
Dec. 02, 2004
Letter
Pierre-Richard Prosper
Pierre-Richard Prosper, George W. Bush
State Department talking points memo on addressing the treatment of detainees at Guantanamo. The memo gives guidance on addressing: Factual Inquiries Concerning welfare/whereabouts of individual detainees; Mail delivery; Visits of a Consular ...
This letter from Amb. Prosper to Margot Kessler of the European Parliament is in response to a letter Ms. Kessler sent to Sec. of State Powell concerning the status and treatment of detainees at Guantanamo. Amb. Prosper states that "The United ...
Dec. 02, 2004
Letter
Pierre-Richard Prosper
Margot Kessler
Pierre-Richard Prosper, George W. Bush, Colin L. Powell
This letter from Amb. Prosper to Helmut Hausle is in response to a letter Mr. Hausle sent to Sec. of State Powell concerning the status and treatment of detainees at Guantanamo. Amb. Prosper states that "The United States and its Coalition ...
Dec. 02, 2004
Letter
Pierre-Richard Prosper
Dr. Helmut Hausle
Pierre-Richard Prosper, George W. Bush, Colin L. Powell
This State Department letter concerns an inquiry about a young man apprehended in Afghanistan by U.S. Forces and believed to be held at Guantanamo. The letter states that "It is not the he position of the United States government that it does not ...