Federal court allows US to keep info on Bagram prisoners a secret

Federal court allows US to keep info on Bagram prisoners a secret
By Stephen C. Webster
Monday, October 25th, 2010 -- 11:33 pm

Prisoners at the US military's Bagram air base prison in Afghanistan could potentially vanish and never be heard from again thanks to a federal court decision on Monday that allowed US officials to keep secret most information related to their captives.

The prison, now known as Parwan, reportedly houses as many as 800 prisoners captured amid America's terror war and has been the source of numerous allegations of torture and abuse over the years since its establishment shortly after the US invasion. Within the prison but in a separate facility resides a reported "black hole," where prisoners are interrogated.

The BBC interviewed nine people who say they were held in the "black hole" and found a pattern of allegations charging sleep deprivation and other advanced torture techniques were employed against prisoners. The site had apparently been used by the Central Intelligence Agency as one of its so-called "black sites" for the interrogation of prisoners, but since President Obama ordered the closure of the secret prisons, Bagram has taken on a more Gitmo-like image and application.

Even though President Obama also ordered the end of abusive interrogation practices, allegations of torture at the Afghan prison surfaced as recently as 10 days ago. A report based on interviews of 18 detainees who say they were held at a facility matching the description of the jail places the time of abuse long after the military had allegedly reformed its operation.

Ruling on a Freedom of Information Act lawsuit filed by the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), the US District Court for the Southern District of New York refused to order the Pentagon to turn over information related to Afghan prisoners of war.

not so much. :(

So I'll add that the FOIA directive from Obama's first week is as good as the "no lobbyists" executive order.

But let's focus on all the accomplishments. He's not god so he can't force congress to make him answer FOIA requests or avoid hiring lobbyists.