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Interrogating Ourselves

(New York Times Magazine) Joseph Lelyveld - Viewed through an Israeli prism, the U.S. still has a lot to learn about the uses and consequences of coercive force, of torture lite, in interrogations. Israeli security specialists are amazed by the multiplicity of commands engaged in the American interrogation scramble, by the short tours of duty and high turnover of interrogators, by the reliance on interpreters and outsourcing to contractors and foreign governments. Nasim Za'atari scouted out potential targets for Hamas, then helped suicide bombers with their disguises and guided them to targets within Israel. Za'atari had already had a hand in two bus bombings - one of them killed 23 Israelis on Aug. 19, 2003 - when he was detained and interrogated the following month. Before his capture, he'd also agreed to guide three bombers from Hebron to new targets in Jerusalem. Soon after his interrogation, Israeli security forces targeted the Hamas recruiter who had prepared the candidates for suicide bombing and seized the bomb belts they would have worn. It was reasonable to imagine that a dozen or maybe several dozen lives were saved.
2005-06-15 00:00:00
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