U.S. official says Gitmo detainee tortured

WASHINGTON, Jan. 14 (UPI) -- A top congressional Democrat called Wednesday for a special prosecutor to investigate a Pentagon official's claim at least one Guantanamo detainee was tortured.

ABC News reported that Rep. John Conyers, D-Mich., demanded the special prosecutor after official Susan J. Crawford told The Washington Post the treatment of detainee Mohammed al-Qahtani "met the legal definition of torture," and she would not refer his case to trial because of his treatment.

Crawford was named by Defense Secretary Robert Gates to serve as the convening legal authority of military commissions,

"We tortured (Mohammed al-) Qahtani," said Susan J. Crawford, told the Post in her first interview since being named convening authority in February 2007. "His treatment met the legal definition of torture. And that's why I did not refer the case."

She said she concluded the U.S. military tortured Qahtani -- a Saudi national who allegedly planned to participate in the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks on the United States -- by using interrogation techniques such as sustained isolation, sleep deprivation, nudity and prolonged exposure to cold, leaving the man in a "life-threatening condition."

Crawford is the first senior official in President George Bush's administration responsible for reviewing practices at Guantanamo to publicly say a detainee was tortured.

The type of interrogation techniques, combined with their duration and impact on Qahtani's health, led her to her conclusion, Crawford said.

"The techniques they used were all authorized, but the manner in which they applied them was overly aggressive and too persistent," she told the Post in an interview published Wednesday, explaining it was the "medical impact that pushed me over the edge."

Disposition of Qahtani's case is one of many President-elect Barack Obama, who pledged to close the controversial military prison, must determine once he takes office.

If Qahtani hadn't been denied entry into the United States, there is "no doubt in my mind he would've been on one of those planes," Crawford, a Republican, said. "He's a very dangerous man. What do you do with him now if you don't charge him and try him? I would be hesitant to say, 'Let him go.'"