When the United States appeared before the U.N. to defend its human rights record, State Department legal advisor Harold Koh assured the world that the U.S. had “thoroughly investigated” alleged abuses of detainees in U.S. custody, and that “appropriate corrective action has been taken.” Koh also asserted that the Justice Department’s initial investigation into torture was actively looking into allegations of abuse by the CIA and other civilian agencies.
Drawing largely from material that has been covered in thetorturereport.com, we have come up with 10 follow-up questions for the U.S. about its compliance with domestic and international prohibitions against torture.
The CIA Inspector General's investigation into the use of “enhanced interrogation techniques” revealed that a number of “unauthorized” techniques were used against Khaled Sheikh Mohammed and Abd al-Rahim al-Nahiri such as threats with a handgun and power drill and threats against family members. Who has been held accountable for those “unauthorized” techniques, and what punishments if any were given?