Forced Nudity, Sleep Deprivation: How CIA Tortured Prisoners At Black Sites

A former Guantanamo detainee's self-portraits depicting the alleged torture he faced at the hands of the CIA have surfaced from sealed court records. Mohammed Farik Bin Amin's drawings, presented during his sentencing trial earlier this year, provide a visual account of interrogation techniques used on detainees following the 9/11 attacks.

Bin Amin, a Malaysian national, was held in CIA-run black sites and later at Guantanamo Bay after he was detained in 2003. His sketches, presented before a military jury in January 2024, show scenes of abuse he claims to have endured during his detention. These include forced nudity, stress positions, sleep deprivation and other unauthorised interrogation methods.

Bin Amin's lawyer, Christine Funk, who negotiated his plea deal, revealed the drawings in court as part of his defence. Funk described the illustrations as a form of therapy and evidence. “This is what his nightmares are all about. This is what he lives with.” Funk said, as per the NY Times.

The self-portraits were declassified after years of effort by Bin Amin's legal team. The government raised no objections when the illustrations were displayed on a large screen in court. This was the first time such visuals were included in the official record of a trial at the post-9/11 war crimes tribunal.

One of the drawings depicts standing sleep deprivation, with Bin Amin shackled and forced to shift his weight to cope with the pain. Another shows him squatting with a broomstick behind his knees while shackled — a technique reportedly used by a CIA interrogator who was later dismissed. Mock waterboarding is portrayed, with guards restraining him as water is poured over his face and body, causing a fear of drowning. Hooded solitary confinement is also shown through an image of him naked, shackled and subjected to white noise in a cold and isolated cell. Then there is also a scene of a dark dungeon that captures him chained to a wall, resulting in physical injuries and discomfort.

During his sentencing trial in January, Bin Amin confessed to war crimes, expressing regret for his involvement with the Southeast Asian extremist organisation, Jemaah Islamiyah, responsible for the 2002 Bali bombings that claimed 202 lives. He acknowledged his role as an accomplice after the attack, assisting the primary perpetrator in evading arrest.