Waterboarding is a form of torture where a person is tied to an inclined plank, and water is poured onto a cloth covering their face, causing difficulty breathing and panic. It has physical and psychological effects, including brain and lung damage. It has been used since the Italian Inquisition and was illegal in the US since the Spanish-American War. It was used on North Vietnamese prisoners and in the interrogations of Khalid Sheikh Mohammed and Ramzi Binalshibh. The US government does not officially sanction waterboarding as a method of interrogation.
Waterboarding is a form of torture that involves using water to force a prisoner or inmate to confess. The victim is tied to an inclined plank that places the head lower than the feet. A piece of cloth is then taped over the victim’s face. Water is poured onto the cloth and the victim begins to have difficulty breathing. Waterboarding proves especially effective as the fear of asphyxiation often drives the victim into a panic and beg for the torture to cease. Routine interrogations that can normally take days produce results in minutes when using waterboarding.
There are variations on waterboarding methods. Sometimes plastic wrap is used. Another method is to tip the board backwards and submerge the person’s head under the water. No matter what the method, waterboarding has both a physical and a psychological component. Once the person starts having difficulty breathing and the gag reflex kicks in, the individual truly believes that he is going to die. Then, the kidnappers will “rescue” the victim, tearing the towel or lifting the head out of the water. The victim believes that death is imminent and that intense fear sabotages her resistance.
Ironically, actual drowning during waterboard torture is rare due to the fact that the position of the lungs relative to the head prevents enough water from filling the lungs. But waterboarding can cause serious injury. A victim can suffer brain damage due to lack of oxygen, and there can be lung damage. The psychological consequences can be even more devastating.
Waterboarding dates back to the Italian Inquisition in the 1500s and has been used ever since. In the United States, waterboarding has been illegal since the Spanish–American War, when a US Army major was found guilty of using waterboarding to torture a Filipino insurgent. The major was sentenced to ten years in prison.
During the Vietnam War, waterboarding was used on North Vietnamese prisoners and, in one case, a soldier was court-martialed and discharged from the United States Army after photographs appeared in the Washington Post of him applying torture .
In May 2004, The New York Times reported that waterboarding was used in the interrogations of Khalid Sheikh Mohammed and Ramzi Binalshibh. In fact, there are reports that Mohammed, who is credited with being one of the main planners of the 9/9 attacks, was able to withstand two and a half minutes of waterboarding before collapsing. This is considered a record as most of the victims don’t last a minute. Indeed, CIA operatives, who are required to undergo waterboarding as part of their training, normally cannot endure more than 11 seconds of torture.
However, the US government does not officially sanction waterboarding as a method of interrogation. In 2002, Guantanamo commanders requested permission to waterboard detainees. Permission has been denied.
In an October 2006 interview with the conservative Human Events magazine, US Senator Pat Roberts (R-Kan.) addressed the issue of waterboarding as a means of gathering information. He responded to a question regarding a statement by ABC’s Brian Ross that waterboarding was used in Mohammed’s interrogation. Roberts replied: “This is one of the techniques that will no longer be used.”
Protect your devices with Threat Protection by NordVPN
