Justice to Probe CIA Tapes

(NEWSER) - AG Eric Holder today named a special prosecutor to investigate allegations of torture against CIA operatives who interrogated terror suspects during the Bush administration, the Washington Post reports. John Durham, who is currently probing the destruction of interrogation tapes, will look into fewer than 12 cases detailed in a CIA report released today and determine if a full-scale investigation is warranted. The Bush-era Justice Department investigated and dismissed the cases. More»

(NEWSER) - Barack Obama made a dangerous mistake in yesterday releasing Justice Department memos about interrogation techniques from 2005, say former Attorney General Michael Mukasey and former CIA Director Michael Hayden. By releasing the details of these methods, Obama is eliminating a crucial intelligence tool—not just for his own administration but forever, the two argue in an outraged Wall Street Journal op ed. They'll be ruined for future presidents, as well, because our enemies will know their precise limits. More»

Mukasey warns he'll stonewall on questions about legality

(NEWSER) - A high-noon face off is looming today between Attorney General Michael Mukasey and the Senate Judiciary Committee over waterboarding, the simulated drowning interrogation technique that many consider torture. Committee chair Patrick Leahy said Mukasey faces "serious questions" on the issue at today's hearing. But Mukasey has warned Leahy in a letter that he will not tell the Senate whether or not waterboarding is illegal. More»

Holder orders pair of inquiries but drops nearly 100 others

(NEWSER) - The is-it-torture debate is probably going to rev up again: The Justice Department says it will launch criminal inquiries into the deaths of two detainees in US custody in 2002 and 2003, reports the Washington Post . Eric Holder gave the green light on the recommendation of federal prosecutor John Durham, who has been looking into CIA interrogations for two years now. Durham, however, said no charges were warranted in 99 other cases. More»

Quiet proceedings investigate 'war crimes,' 'torture'

(NEWSER) - A secret federal grand jury is now hearing witnesses in the decade-old case of the “Iceman,” an Abu Ghraib prisoner who died on the CIA’s watch. It’s just one of several cases in the jury’s “investigation of possible violations of federal criminal laws involving War Crimes, Torture, and related federal offenses,” according to a subpoena signed by prosecutor John Durham, a US attorney. The process could result in charges for CIA officers and government contractors, Time reports. More»