Torture by the CIA

The now disclosed torture practiced by the CIA after the terrorist attacks on Sept. 11, 2001 brings to light human rights violations in the name of “national security,” such as mass espionage by violating private communications. 


As a matter of fact, that suspected terrorists have been tortured in the U.S., not just after Sept. 11, but in previous years, is nothing new. But that the difficult details have been disclosed by no less than a report from the Senate has left the country — which sets itself up as a champion of world freedom — facing a serious precedent of the most brutal methods Washington often condemns in other countries. 


The report from the upper-level House Intelligence Committee reveals that the CIA carried out far more brutal interrogations than what was officially admitted to, using perverse techniques and in the most inhumane conditions of detention, with total impunity, which the organization Amnesty International confirms. For years nobody has been brought to justice for authorizing or tolerating these programs by the American agency, even in the face of the large amount of evidence which has come to light. 


So far only part of the 6,600-page Senate report is known, with details from a five-year investigation, but with what has been disclosed, it is more than sufficient for a global outcry under the scope of international law. The U.S. must disclose the truth about these human rights violations, which additionally jeopardize and put in danger the security systems and cooperation in intelligence which involve allied countries.