The Gitmo Gulag

(Newser) - Before he can close Guantanamo, Barack Obama must decide what to do with the 250 detainees still there. About 80 are scheduled to be tried and will serve their sentences in their home countries, USA Today reports. The Pentagon has approved the release of 60 more, but has not found countries to accept them. That leaves 110 alleged terrorists deemed too dangerous to be let out. More »

(Newser) - European Union countries are considering giving Barack Obama a helping hand by accepting released Guantanamo Bay prisoners for resettlement, the Washington Post reports. Requests from the Bush administration to take Gitmo detainees were flatly rejected by the EU, but Portugal has now signaled its willingness to accept some prisoners and has urged other countries to follow suit. More »

(Newser) - Governments have known for centuries that torture yields questionable intelligence, and none of the evidence accumulated during US grilling sessions contradicts that argument, David Rose writes in Vanity Fair. Rose carefully documents the inaccurate and even falsified information obtained from suspects Abu Zubaydah, Binyam Mohamed, Jose Padilla, and Khalid Sheikh Mohammed under duress, to the detriment of America's international reputation. More »

(Newser) - Portugal is willing to resettle some detainees freed from Guantanamo Bay, and it urged its fellow European countries to do likewise. It’s a diplomatic breakthrough that could help close the controversial US prison, the New York Times reports. Of the 250 detainees still in Guantanamo, 60 have been cleared for release but can’t be returned home for fear they’ll face persecution or torture there. More »

(Newser) - Former Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld and other top White House officials were responsible for detainee abuse at US military prisons, a bipartisan Senate report finds. After 2 years of hearing testimony and reviewing documents, the study—released by Sens. John McCain and Carl Levin—traces controversial interrogation practices like sleep deprivation directly to high-level Bush administration decisions, the Washington Post reports. More »

(Newser) - The music played at high volume for hours on end by US interrogators to torture prisoners held at Guantanamo Bay spanned all genres. But the military overseers did have a few favorite songs, including: Born in the USA , by Bruce Springsteen American Pie , by Don McLean Staying Alive , by the Bee Gees Baby One More Time , by Britney Spears Dirrty , by Christina Aguilera For more top torture tracks, click the link below. More »