10 May 2004
Excerpted from "The Alleged Al Qaeda Manual":
http://cryptome.org/alq-terr-man.htm
This manual appears to be a compilation of material drawn from various military, intelligence and law enforcement manuals for internal security, guerilla and covert operations around the globe, and thus is not unique for its alleged sponsorship by Al Qaeda -- which is not mentioned in the manual. Most of these manuals make use of each other's offerings and are studied and emulated worldwide by internal security, military, intelligence and commercial organizations for offensive and defensive purposes. Interrogation means and methods are customarily classified as with the US Army report on prisoner abuses at the Abu Ghraib prison in Iraq.
INTERROGATION AND INVESTIGATION
Fundamental Differences Between Interrogation and Questioning: Many people confuse the nature of the interrogation with that of questioning, and confuse what should be mentioned in the interrogation with that of the investigation.
Interrogation: Consists of a psychological warfare and intellectual combat between the intelligence agent and the suspect through questions and answers related to one or more topics. The interrogation uses all kinds of physical and psychological techniques to break the will of the suspect and lead him to a total collapse. The agency that conducts the interrogation is the government's questioning apparatus that belongs to the Ministry of Interior Affairs. The officers of tht apparatus graduate from the police academy. In our country, that apparatus has no values or code of ethics. It does not hesitate to use all kinds of torture and bodily and emotional harm to obtain evidence that could incriminate the suspect.
Questioning: Questioning is similar to interrogation in that they are both forms of psychological warfare and intellectual combat. The questioning, however, is conducted by the prosecution [office of district attorney], which is under the judicial branch. That authority is (apparently) independent from the government (executive branch) and from the people's parliament (legislative branch). The prosecution officials graduate from law school and use the technique of confrontation and repeated questioning, but without torture.
The brother should take the following measures:
1. Under pressure of torture in the custody of the questioning apparatus, the brother may reveal some secrets. However, in the custody of the prosecution, the interrogation does not use physical force, but may use psychological coercion (threats and harsh words).
2. In publicized cases, the questioning apparatus is careful not to allow the brother to talk in the district attorney's office. Coordination takes place between the questioning apparatus and the prosecution office. Torture of the brother takes place once again in the questioning apparatus [center] to force him to confess in the prosecution center. That may be repeated more than once, until the brother confesses or they give up. The important thing to remember is that whatever the brother says in the prosecution center will be recorded against him and will be the basis for his judgement.
3. Every word that the brother utters in the prosecution center makes a negative impact on him, on his colleagues, and later, on the judgement and major decisions.
When taken to the prosecution office, the brother should do the following:
a. He should, prior to questioning and whether or not he has injuries, ask the prosecutor or his representative to be seen by the medical examiner.b. He should, when the questioning begins, ask that evidence of his torture be entered in the report proceedings.
c. He should, prior to the start of the questioning, ask that an attorney be present with him during the questioning process. He should mention the attorney by name.
d. He should ask for food.
e. He should deny all information [accusations] about him by the prosecution representative. He should claim that the interrogation apparatus has fabricated those accusations and should deny his connection to anything\ obtained against him.f. The brother may have to confess under pressure of torture in the interrogation center. Once in the prosecution center, however, he should say that he was tortured, deny all his former confessions, and ask that the interrogation be repeated.
Interrogation Techniques: A number of techniques are used to interrogate the brothers. The exact techniques used may be different from one brother to another depending on the brother's status in the group and on current events. Interrogation is limited to the following types:
A. Summoning:
1. This is the simplest type of interrogation. It can happen to anyone under normal circumstances. In this type, the interrogation apparatus summons a brother by letter or messenger to appear.2. This happens when the brother does not respond to them [the interrogation apparatus], unless the command sees otherwise.
3. If the command approves his appearing, the brother should be careful not to give the enemy any [vital] information. He should agree with the command on the line of answers to be followed during the interrogation and should answer questions wisely.
4. Immediately upon his return, the brother should relate to the command all that happened to him in the interrogation process.
5. The [interrogated] brother should memorize the appearance of the interrogation building, its interior, and the appearance of the officers. The interrogation is a major opportunity for the [Islamic] group as long as the brother is tactful, bright, and observant. When summoned, usually the brother is not blindfolded or tortured.
B. Interrogation Surrounding Publicized Arrests:
1. The brother may be arrested as a result of public incidents, such as the murder of an important personality, military overthrow [of government], or the escape of Islamic leaders from prison.2. In these cases, the interrogation would be more severe. As long as there is no connection between the brother and the incident, the questions would remain general: Where were you during the incident? Who do you think executed it? Whom of the Jihad brothers do you know?
3. The degree of torture varies according to the importance of the brother and the suspicion that he is connected with the incidents.
Steps of Interrogation:
1. The brother is arrested while walking in the street or at home. He is transported to a waiting room. After a while, he is searched and interrogated without being blindfolded (depends on the importance of the matter). He is then placed in a cell in the interrogation center, in a holding cell in the police station, or in a common prison.2. The brother is kept for a few days without interrogation. Then he is interrogated by a number of persons in an interrogation room. The room is ordinary, containing one or more desks, some chairs, and some torture devices, as needed.
3. In the beginning, the brother may not be treated harshly, but rather kindly. He may be offered a chair with a cup of tea or a drink. Then he would be asked to recall information that is useful to the interrogators. If the brother refuses to offer any information and denies that he knows anything, he is then treated harshly. He and his family may be cursed, he may be forced into submission by following orders such as: face the wall, don't talk, don't raise your voice. All of that is to frighten the brother. The brother should refuse to supply any information and deny his knowledge of the subject in question. Further, the brother should disobey the interrogator's orders as much as he can by raising his voice, cursing the interrogator back, and refusing to face the wall. The interrogator would resort to beating the brother in order to force him to obey. Thus, that attempt would fail.
4. Within about a day, another session would be held with the brother. Usually, in this session the brother would be blindfolded, beaten, and tortured. He would be made to believe that his role in the incidents has been learned and that it is better if he talks. The cursing and torturing would intensify, depending on what the brother reveals. The brother should not disclose any information, no matter how insignificant he might think it is, in order not to open a door that cannot be closed until he incriminates himself or exposes his Organization. The interrogator cannot obtain what he wants and extract any information unless the brother talks. The brother may think that by giving a little information he can avoid harm and torture.However, the opposite is true. The torture and harm would intensify to obtain additional information, and that cycle would repeat. Thus, the brother should be patient, resistant, silent, and prayerful to Allah, especially if the security apparatus knows little about him.
5. In prison cells, do not talk to anyone you did not previously know. Some [prisoners] may be [enemy] agents or may have different orientations.6. In cases like these, and as long as the brother indicates no connection to the incidents, the interrogation takes place in the interrogation center only, not in the prosecution center. In this interrogation session, it is important to remember the basic rule: Even a little disclosure of information would increase your amount of torture and result in additional information for the questioning apparatus.
Investigating Specific Matters Connected to the Brother:
1. The brother may be captured at a distant location through informants, or in a location connected to the incident (apartment, the actual incident location). At that time, the brother may possess items related to the incident (weapons, documents, blood stains, ...). The brother may also be captured while crossing the border.2. The brother will be placed in a holding room, then stripped of his possessions (watch, money, Koran, ...), blindfolded, and handcuffed. The questioning begins, in a friendly manner, by writing reports about him (name, address, education, residence, employment, family, ...). In this session, the questioning official tries to break the resistance of the brother by informing him that confession is better for him and that steadfastness is impossible because he cannot deny anything. He adds that painful torture will be used if he does not talk. He lures the brother by saying that if he confesses he will be immediately released and given money, educational scholarships, etc. In the first session, the brother would be studied through his statements and the manner of dealing with the interrogator. Then a plan is devised for dealing with the brother.
3. If the earlier, friendly approach fails and the brother does not cooperate with the interrogator, another session is held using torture in order to control the brother through fright and orders (sit down, don't sit down, face the wall, don't talk, don't raise your voice, curses and insults). The brother should not weaken, but should try to disobey the interrogator's orders or take his time in executing them. If the interrogators find that the torture technique is successful, they would intensify it. However, if they find that the brother is dodging them, they would resort to psychological torture techniques.4. Some interrogators may try to confuse the brother, distort his reasoning, and tangle his thoughts by throwing may questions at him at the same time and not allowing him the chance to answer them. If the brother delays his answers, he would be struck. During that torture [session], the brother is given a chance to speak, even tell a lie, in return for halting the torture. He is given a sheet of paper and asked to write whatever he wants in return for his release, for not prosecuting him, etc. They start deceiving the brother by saying that his refusal to talk or write means that he is afraid of revealing dangerous secrets he possesses.
5. During the interrogation, or while the brother is in the holding room, he may be made to listen to another brother's cries from a nearby cell. This is done in order to break the brother's resistance. They may even resort to having the brother hear some of his brothers' confessions and bringing papers and documents that prove his involvement in the incident.6. In all prior situations the brother has three options:
a. Patience, steadfastness, and silence about any information whatsoever. That is very difficult except for those who take refuge in Allah.b. Executing the security plan that was agreed upon prior to execution of the operation and not deviating from it.
c. In case others deviate from the security plan, confirm the information given without adding to it.
d. If the brother is the first subject in the interrogation, he should adhere steadfastly to the security plan in order to avoid trouble for the brothers that will follow.
e. The worse case - Allah forbid - is when the brother breaks down totally and tells all he knows, which is due to a poor choice in the brother. Thus, it is important to test individuals prior to such work in order to ensure their steadfastness and minimze the likelihood of their breaking down. Testing may be done by accusing him of being an enemy agent and lying about the reported information, in the event he is supplying detailed information.
f. Important information should not be discussed with the brothers, as they might reveal it during the interrogation.
Torture Methods: Secret agents use two methods of torture: A. Physical torture. B. Psychological torture
A. Method of Physical Torture:
1. Blindfolding and stripping of clothes.2. Hanging by the hands.
3. Hanging by the feet [upside down].
4. Beating with sticks and electrical wires.
5. Whipping and beating with sticks and twisted rubber belts.
6. Forcing the brother to stand naked for long periods of time.
7. Pouring cold water on the brother's head.
8. Putting out lighted cigarettes on the brother's skin.
9. Shocking with an electrical current,
10. Kicking and punching.
11. Attacking the brother with vicious dogs.
12. making the brother sit on a stake.
13. Throwing in a septic tank.
14. Pulling out the nails and hair.
15. Dragging.
16. Tying the hands and feet from behind.
17. Utilizing sharp objects, such as a pocketknife or piece of glass.
18. Burning with fire.
19. Sleeping on a bare marble floor without a cover and flooding the cell with sewer water.
20. Standing on toes and against a wall pressing with the fingers for long hours. The brother may be denied sleep, food, drink, and medicine.
21. Beating on cuts and sore parts of the body.
22. Giving the brother a lot of water or very watery fruits, such as watermelon, after denying him food and drink. After the brother drinks or eats the fruit, his hands and penis will be tied so the brother will not be able to urinate.
23. Placing drugs and narcotics in the brother's food to weaken his will power.24. Placing the brother in solitary confinement where the cells are made of a special kind of cement that gets extremely hot in the summer and cold in winter.
25. Hitting the brother's genitals with a stick or squeezing them by hand.
26. Dragging the brother over barb wires and fragments of glass and metal.
B. Methods of Psychological Torture:
1. Isolating the brother socially, cutting him off from public life, placing him in solitary confinement, and denying him news and information in order to make him feel lonely.2. Forbidding calling him by name, giving the brother a number, and calling him by that number in order to defeat his morale.
3. Threatening to summon his sister, mother, wife, or daughter and rape her.
4. Threatening to rape the brother himself.
5. Threatening to confiscate his possessions and to have him fired from his employment.
6. Threatening to cause a permanent physical disability or life imprisonment.
7. Offer the brother certain enticements (apartment, car, passport, scholarship, etc.).
8. Using harsh treatment, insults, and curses to defeat his morale.
9. Controlling everything the brother does, even in private, whether he is awake or asleep, to convince him that they are in charge. They would force him to bow his head and look down while talking with the guards.
Further, let no one think that the aforementioned techniques are fabrications of our imagination, or that we copied them from spy stories. On the contrary, these are factual incidents in the prisons of Egypt, Syria, Jordan, Saudi Arabia, and all other Arab countries. Those who follow daily events and read the newspapers and journals would be amazed to learn that:
security personnel totally undressed veiled women in public. The security personnel arrested a brother's mother, a brother's sister, and a brother's wife and raped them.the wife of brother Saffout Abdul Ghani - may Allah have him released - had a miscarriage when the government's dogs (i.e. cronies) beat and tortured her in front of her husband.
the security personnel captured brother Hassan Al-Gharbawilas mother, who is older than 60 years, and hanged her by her feet [upside down). The security personnel shaved the head of the wife of a brother who participated in the murder of Rif'at Al-Kahjoub [Egypt's former parliament speaker].
The stories are numerous and there is intense torture while Muslims are in deep sleep.
O young men waging a holy war for the sake of Allah, there is still hope in you. Your country awaits you, your brothers await you, your wives wait you, the Muslim hostages await you.
Advice Taken from the book "Mothakkarat Fida'i Aire8" [Memoirs of a Captured Commando]: Concerning interrogation and questioning, paraphrased.
____________________
8 This book is the memoirs of an Iranian Communist. All brothers should read it.
1. While being taken to the interrogation and torture areas, one should concentrate heavily on the route and try to memorize any signs in order to benefit operations and plan development.
2. In the beginning of the interrogation, a security officer (interrogator) would come to you with fatherly advice, deceitful phrases, and "crocodile tears" so you might confess and tell them everything.
3. It is necessary to secretly discard any document related to the work or anything else considered criminal evidence against you. Better, do not carry any documents concerning the work.
4. From the first moment in captivity, the brother should proudly take a firm and opposing position against the enemy and not obey the orders. The more firm and opposing the reaction, the more beneficial it is. These reactions will not lead to harsher treatment. Do not give the enemy an opportunity or an opening.
5. During the torture process, pretend that the pain is severe by bending over and crying loudly.
6. As torture intensifies, its end nears.
7. Between torture sessions, the officers bargain with brother and entice him with ending the torture if he supplies them with any information.
8. During the torture session, the counseling preacher may become a vicious beast.
9. The one who gives one piece of information to avoid the lashes of whips is deluding himself because the torture would intensify.
10. It is necessary that each brother plan for his interrogation and discuss it with his commander. He may be captured one day.
11. When I talk while under torture, I do not mention unknown dates and places to the security personnel, but well known ones.
12. When I mention dates or names, it is important to memorize them because they will ask about them again to know if I was truthful.
13. Pretending to be naive and ignorant during the questioning may lead to diverging from the plan, because all factors are against the brother: The place, the people, the situation. That leads to some or all the outcomes desired by the enemy. That is, it is important to remain psychologically and mentally calm and to maintain alertness and foresight.
14. Detailing events during the questioning, whether verbally or in writing, directly increases the crime. That person's situation is just like someone who falls in a swamp [quick sand]: the more he tries to save himself, the deeper he sinks.
15. The less information supplied during the torture, the lighter the judgement will be.
16. A devastating mistake that results in harsh judgement is that of a brother revealing information to others in his cell not revealed during the torture. This is especially true when the interrogation is still going on, his fate has been determined, and the case has not been closed.
17. Relating experiences should not take place prior to the judgement, but after it.
18. The interrogators may resort to planting suspicion and mistrust among the brothers. They may pretend that they have a friendly relationship with one of the brothers. It is necessary to think well of one another.
19. Do not accept humiliation and disgrace. Disobey orders and oppose them.
20. It is important to coordinate with your brothers before executing any operation (security plan).
21. The security personnel may leave you for long periods of time without asking you any questions in order to break your will and determination.
22. During the interrogation, say only the things that you agreed upon with
your commander. Do not be concerned about other brothers.
PRISONS AND DETENTION CENTERS
IF AN INDICTMENT IS ISSUED AND THE TRIAL, BEGINS, THE BROTHER HAS TO PAY ATTENTION TO THE FOLLOWING:
1. At the beginning of the trial, once more the brothers must insist on proving that torture was inflicted on them by State Security [investigators] before the judge.
2. Complain [to the court] of mistreatment while in prison.
3. Make arrangements for the brother’s defense with the attorney, whether he was retained by the brother’s family or court-appointed.
4. The brother has to do his best to know the names of the state security officers, who participated in his torture and mention their names to the judge. [These names may be obtained from brothers who had to deal with those officers in previous cases.]
5. Some brothers may tell and may be lured by the state security investigators to testify against the brothers [i.e. affirmation witness], either by not keeping them together in the same prison during the trials, or by letting them talk to the media. In this case,they have to be treated gently, and should be offered good advice, good treatment, and pray that God may guide them.
6. During the trial, the court has to be notified of any mistreatment of the brothers inside the prison.
7. It is possible to resort to a hunger strike, but it is a tactic that can either succeed or fail.
8. Take advantage of visits to communicate with brothers outside prison and exchange information that may be helpful to them in their work outside prison [according to what occurred during the investigations]. The importance of mastering the art of hiding messages is self evident here.
- When the brothers are transported from and to the prison [on their way to the court] they should shout Islamic slogans out loud from inside the prison cars to impress upon the people and their family the need to support Islam.
- Inside the prison, the brother should not accept any work that may belittle or demean him or his brothers, such as the cleaning of the prison bathrooms or hallways.
- The brothers should create an Islamic program for themselves inside the prison, as well as recreational and educational ones, etc.
- The brother in prison should be a role model in selflessness. Brothers should also pay attention to each others needs and should help each other and unite vis a vis the prison officers.
- The brothers must take advantage of their presence in prison for obeying and worshiping [God] and memorizing the Qora’an, etc. This is in addition to all guidelines and procedures that were contained in the lesson on interrogation and investigation. Lastly, each of us has to understand that we don’t achieve victory against our enemies through these actions and security procedures. Rather, victory is achieved by obeying Almighty and Glorious God and because of their many sins. Every brother has to be careful so as not to commit sins and everyone of us has to do his best in obeying Almighty God, Who said in his Holy Book: “We will, without doubt, help Our messengers and those who believe (both) in this world’s life and the one Day when the Witnesses will stand forth.”
May God guide us.
[Dedication)
To this pure Muslim youth, the believer, the mujahid (fighter) for God’s sake. I present this modest effort as a contribution from me to pave the way that will lead to Almighty God and to establish a caliphate along the lines of the prophet.
The prophet, peace be upon him, said according to what was related by Imam Ahmed: “Let the prophecy that God wants be in you, yet God may remove it if He so wills, and then there will be a Caliphate according to the prophet’s path [instruction], if God so wills it. He will also remove that [the Caliphate] if He so wills, and you will have a disobedient king if God so wills it. Once again, if God so wills, He will remove him [the disobedient king], and you will have an oppressive lung. [Finally], if God so wills, He will remove him [the oppressive king], and you will have a Caliphate according to the prophet’s path [instruction]. He then became silent.”
THE IMPORTANCE OF TEAM WORK:
1. Team work is the only translation of God’s command, as well as that of the prophet, to unite and not to disunite. Almighty God says, “And hold fast, all together, by the Rope which Allah (stretches out for you), and be not divided among yourselves.” In “Sahih Muslim,” it was reported by Abu Horairah, may Allah look kindly upon him, that the prophet, may Allah’s peace and greetings be upon him, said: “Allah approves three [things] for you and disapproves three [things]: He approves that you worship him, that you do not disbelieve in Him, and that you hold fast, all together, by the Rope which Allah, and be not divided among yourselves. He disapproves of three: gossip, asking too much [for help], and squandering money.”
2. Abandoning “team work” for individual and haphazard work means disobeying that orders of God and the prophet and falling victim to disunity.
3. Team work is conducive to cooperation in righteousness and piety.
4. Upholding religion, which God has ordered us by His saying, “Uphold religion,” will necessarily require an all out confrontation against all our enemies, who want to recreate darkness. In addition, it is imperative to stand against darkness in all arenas: the media, education, [religious] guidance, and counseling, as well as others. This will make it necessary for us to move on numerous fields so as to enable the Islamic movement to confront ignorance and achieve victory against it in the battle to uphold religion. All these vital goals can not be adequately achieved without organized team work. Therefore, team work becomes a necessity, in accordance with the fundamental rule, “Duty cannot be accomplished without it, and it is a requirement.” This way, team work is achieved through mustering and organizing the ranks, while putting the Amir (the Prince) before them, and the right man in the right place, making plans for action, organizing work, and obtaining facets of power......