Born in the USA Tops Gitmo Torture Charts

Even 'I Kissed a Girl' not as obvious as it sounds

(NEWSER) - In honor of Jay-Z’s Decoded, which breaks down the meanings behind his songs, the Independent offers up the true stories behind 10 hits:

• Katy Perry, “I Kissed a Girl”: The message behind this one seems fairly obvious, but Perry has insisted it’s actually about heterosexual friendships and was only sexed up to sell more records.
• Van Morrison, “Brown Eyed Girl”: Though many think it’s about heroin use, Van Morrison has said it is about an interracial relationship and was originally titled “Brown Skinned Girl.”

Men alleged that UK intelligence agencies colluded in torture

(NEWSER) - The British government plans to pay compensation amounting to millions of dollars to a dozen former Guantanamo Bay inmates. The men, all British citizens or residents, had launched court proceedings against the government and claimed that British intelligence services had colluded in their torture in secret prisons abroad, the Guardian reports. More»

Federal, Military prosecutors fight for rare testimony

(NEWSER) - Federal and military prosecutors looking to convict Khalid Sheikh Mohammed and other high-profile Guantanamo Bay detainees are competing with each other to offer plea bargains to lower-profile inmates in exchange for testimony. Some detainees have remained at Gitmo because they are considered too difficult to prosecute, and the evidence against some of them is so thin that in one case, a prosecutor asked a defendant to suggest a charge he’d be willing to cop to. More»

Time for torturers to face the music, say celebs

(NEWSER) - A coalition of celebrity musicians is demanding the release of Bush administration documents revealing how music was used to torture Guantanamo Bay inmates. Songs from Metallica, The Real Slim Shady, and the Star Spangled Banner, among many others, were blasted all day for days on end to rattle prisoners, inmates have revealed. "The fact that music I helped create was used in crimes against humanity sickens me," said Tom Morello, formerly of Rage Against the Machine. "We need to end torture and close Guantanamo now." More»

(NEWSER) - The Obama administration is fighting to keep details secret in the case of a former Guantanamo detainee who says he was tortured, the San Francisco Chronicle reports. A San Francisco court has ruled Binyam Mohamed and four others can sue the company they allege flew them to secret CIA prisons—but the government has asked it to reconsider on the grounds of national security. More»