Guantanamo revelations continue to come out

"These are classic stories of men who ended up in Guantanamo by mistake," charged attorney Tom Wilner, who represents 11 Kuwaiti prisoners held in the detention center at the U.S. Navy base in eastern Cuba.

Most of his clients say they falsely confessed to belonging to Afghanistan's ousted Taliban regime or the al-Qaida terror network as a way to stop the abuse, Wilner said. He said one is too angry over his treatment to discuss details of his case, but all argue their detentions are unjustified.

[...]

Maj. Michael Shavers, a Pentagon spokesman, said all "credible" abuse allegations are investigated, but he suggested the Kuwaitis' claims were consistent with al-Qaida tactics to falsely allege abuse or mistreatment.

"That these detainees are now making allegations of abuse seems to fit the standard operating procedure in al-Qaida training manuals," Shavers said in response to questions from The Associated Press about the Kuwaitis' accusations.
  Yahoo News article

Yes, because it's not like we have plenty of incontrovertible evidence of U.S. agents/military personnel abusing detainees, or anything.

Although most of 11 Kuwaitis say physical abuse stopped once they arrived at Guantanamo, all complain of mistreatment, such as being locked in cells with scant reading materials and little information on the outside world, Wilner said in a conference call from Washington to discuss recently declassified notes on his meetings with the detainees.

"At Guantanamo, the physical abuse — at least for Kuwaitis — has stopped, but there has been a switch to mental torture," he said.

[...]

Lawyers are required to surrender attorney-client notes before leaving the U.S. base. The notes are sealed and sent to a secure facility in Arlington, Va., where attorneys must request for them to be reviewed and unclassified. The lawyers must also get government permission to speak about their conversations with the detainees.

Some of Wilner's clients range from a young man who is accused of being Osama bin Laden's spiritual adviser to a low-level member of the Taliban. None has been charged.

One detainee, according to Wilner's notes, said: "The American soldiers kept saying, 'Are you Taliban or are you al-Qaida?' 'Are you Taliban or al-Qaida!' They kept hitting me, so eventually I said I was a member of the Taliban."

Another Kuwaiti told Wilner he was held by U.S. troops in Afghanistan at bases in Bagram and Kandahar where he was hooded, tied with chains, hung by his wrists and stripped in front of female guards. He also said his interrogator forced him to sign a statement, but Wilner said the government has not provided him with any statement.

One Kuwaiti said he was sure he would be killed, Wilner's notes said.

Another Kuwaiti described how he confessed after having metal paddles placed under his arms and shocked in Afghanistan. Another said he was beaten so badly his ribs were broken. Some said they were beaten with chains.

One said U.S. troops in Afghanistan pulled down his pants and sodomized him with an object.

"One of the saddest things is these people looked up to Americans for liberating Kuwait in the '90s," Wilner said. "A lot of them still can't believe U.S. troops are doing this."

I can't believe it either. Because we have the information and the ability to make them stop.