The value of harsh interrogation renewed
from PrairiePundit by Merv
At least two major plots were thwarted because of intelligence learned after water boarding KSM. The Canary Wharf plot in the UK and the Library Towers plot in LA. Liberals do not like to admit this because it is inconsistent with their theory that nothing of value was achieved through the harsh interrogations. Now it appears that a thread developed during the interrogation eventually led to find bin Laden.
And you know what, Obama went with it. He apparently did not nix the strike because the evidence derived from "the fruit of the poison tree" theory that excludes such evidence from court proceedings. Maybe he is not as unrealistic as he sometimes sounds when he is pontificating in front of liberals.
Obama owes apology to some guys at the CIA
from PrairiePundit
The left has been furiously in denial about the value of this key piece of information. They do not want it to be true that we got this information through interrogation techniques the left does not approve of. Thiesan has been a supporter of the men who have been attacked by Obama and others and he has argued all along about the importance of the information gathered through enhanced interrogation efforts.
Rumsfeld vs. Panetta on The Value of Torture in Finding Bin Laden
from Reason Magazine - Hit & Run
by Nick Gillespie
Former Bush Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld tells Newsmax:
"The United States Department of Defense did not do waterboarding for interrogation purposes to anyone. It is true that some information that came from normal interrogation approaches at Guantanamo did lead to information that was beneficial in this instance. But it was not harsh treatment and it was not waterboarding."He adds:"No one was waterboarded at Guantanamo Bay. That’s a myth that’s been perpetrated around the country by critics."Eh, not sure how much the location of U.S.-administered or -approved torture matters and that sort of detail makes me think that Rummy is already justifying various levels of deception in the playgrounds of his mind.
And then there's current CIA director Leon Panetta, who told NBC News:"We had multiple series of sources that provided information with regards to this situation… clearly some of it came from detainees [and] they used these enhanced interrogation techniques against some of those detainees," he told NBC anchor Brian Williams.When asked by Williams if water-boarding was part of the "enhanced interrogation techniques," Panetta simply said "that’s correct."
....
The debate over torture in this case and as a larger matter is important. Mark Bowden's 2003 Atlantic story "The Dark Art of Interrogation" is an essential starting point. Bowden concludes,As long as it remains illegal to torture, the interrogator who employs coercion must accept the risk. He must be prepared to stand up in court, if necessary, and defend his actions. Interrogators will still use coercion because in some cases they will deem it worth the consequences. This does not mean they will necessarily be punished. In any nation the decision to prosecute a crime is an executive one. A prosecutor, a grand jury, or a judge must decide to press charges, and the chances that an interrogator in a genuine ticking-bomb case would be prosecuted, much less convicted, is very small....
The Bush Administration has adopted exactly the right posture on the matter. Candor and consistency are not always public virtues. Torture is a crime against humanity, but coercion is an issue that is rightly handled with a wink, or even a touch of hypocrisy; it should be banned but also quietly practiced. Those who protest coercive methods will exaggerate their horrors, which is good: it generates a useful climate of fear. It is wise of the President to reiterate U.S. support for international agreements banning torture, and it is wise for American interrogators to employ whatever coercive methods work. It is also smart not to discuss the matter with anyone.
If interrogators step over the line from coercion to outright torture, they should be held personally responsible. But no interrogator is ever going to be prosecuted for keeping Khalid Sheikh Mohammed awake, cold, alone, and uncomfortable. Nor should he be.
Obama Was Wrong Again… Waterboarded Terrorist Gave US Name of OBL’s Courier
from Gateway Pundit
by Jim Hoft
Now we find this out…
Waterboarded terrorist Khalid Sheikh Mohammed gave the US the name of Osama’s courier.
The Star-Tribune reported:Officials say CIA interrogators in secret overseas prisons developed the first strands of information that ultimately led to the killing of Osama bin Laden.
Current and former U.S. officials say that Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, the mastermind of the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks, provided the nom de guerre of one of bin Laden’s most trusted aides. The CIA got similar information from Mohammed’s successor, Abu Faraj al-Libi. Both were subjected to harsh interrogation tactics inside CIA prisons in Poland and Romania.
Rep. Peter King: "Through Waterboarding… We Got Vital Information That Directly Led Us to Bin Laden" (Video)
from Gateway Pundit
by Jim Hoft
http://gatewaypundit.rightnetwork.com/2011/05/rep-peter-king-osamas-death-came-from-waterboarding-video
During tonight’s O’Reilly Factor, guest Rep. Peter King (R-NY) claimed that the information that led to bin Laden’s death came as a result of waterboarding.
http://gatewaypundit.rightnetwork.com/2011/05/rep-peter-king-doubles-down-waterboarding-got-us-to-osama-video
"The initial information on the courier was obtained from waterboarding in 2003. That came from Khalid Sheik Mohammad… People who were on the ground and very familiar to the situation told me this."
Terror Expert Fred Burton: Waterboarding Led Us to Osama Bin Laden (Video)
from Gateway Pundit
by Jim Hoft
Fred Burton:“It’s my understanding that the intelligence nugget that we first got was based on the courier’s pseudonym which came from Khalid Sheikh Mohammed through enhanced interrogation techniques when he was first located in one of our out of the country prisons… I think it’s very good intelligence information that the original nugget of information surfaced during his first interview at an out of the country facility.”The Telegraph reported:…The file suggests that the courier’s identity was provided to the US by another key source, the al-Qaida facilitator Hassan Ghul, who was captured in Iraq in 2004 and interrogated by the CIA. Ghul was never sent to Guantanamo but was believed to have been taken to a prison in Pakistan.Ace of Spades put together the the timeline that started back in 2003 during the Bush years that led to Osama’s death on Sunday.
Where the Trail to bin Laden Began
from Power Line
by John
More information is coming out about how American intelligence identified and tracked down the al Qaeda courier who led to Osama bin Laden. It appears that the CIA's interrogations of Khalid Sheikh Mohammed and Abu Faraj al-Libi provided the information that began the chain the culminated in bin Laden's death yesterday:
Officials say CIA interrogators in secret overseas prisons developed the first strands of information that ultimately led to the killing of Osama bin Laden.
Current and former U.S. officials say that Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, the mastermind of the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks, provided the nom de guerre of one of bin Laden's most trusted aides. The CIA got similar information from Mohammed's successor, Abu Faraj al-Libi. Both were subjected to harsh interrogation tactics inside CIA prisons in Poland and Romania.
KSM and Libi are two of the three al Qaeda leaders who were waterboarded. Published accounts indicate that waterboarding was key to getting valuable information from them.
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