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One More Torture Testimony

By possum

Cage Prisoners as a site works to keep stories of the detainees around the world in the public eye.  Testimony [the personal stories of detainees] from Zeeshan Siddiqui was released in the past few days.  Once again the tale is one of horror in detention.
According to his story Zeeshan traveled to Pakistan in 2003 in search of a place to study Islamic Jurisprudence.  Arrest came early on morning.

Suddenly at about 3.30 am there was a loud bang which woke me up. It sounded like someone hitting metal. I woke up and saw that loads of men were standing around my bed. They had assault rifles in their hands which were pointed at me.

In shackles and chains Zeeshan was taken away in a Land Cruiser.  Verbal abuse came soon.

They put a hood over my head. I was asking them to take the chain and hood off my head. They were shouting 'bain chowd' which means 'sister fucker' to me all the time.

Then the physical abuse began.

he men holding men started to squeeze my arm and my neck in painful way. The other man who had hold of the chain to the shackle kept pulling the chain. This was also very painful.

Interrogation was the next step in the process.  Threats became routine.

Up to this point the following threats had been made; to hang me from meat hooks by the shackles on my wrists, yelling and swearing, someone came in with chains to reinforce threats, threatened to pull my nails out, threatened to slit my flesh, they told me that they had been lenient and they could break people's bones, they threatened to torture me.

Beatings followed in sequence after threats failed to gain any information.

While I was being beaten they were throwing cold water at me to try and make me open my eyes.

After Zeeshan was transferred to Lady Reading Hospital Bolton Block, the abuse continued

During the 10 days [in the hospital] I was subjected to the following treatment:

1. Refused access to toilet

2. Refused to remove feeding pipe and catheter which were painful

3. Used removal of catheter as a bargaining tool

4. Made me sleep in a bed covered with my own urine. Made me keep clothes on which were covered in urine.

5. IB officers forcefully pulled the catheter out which caused me heavy bleeding and severe pain.

6. Kept me shackled.

7. Beat me across face and head whilst chained in bed.

8. Beat me immediately following removal of catheter whilst I was bleeding.

9. Daily injections in elbow and once in my neck.

10. Threats of sexual abuse. MFA undid shirt and touched chest, then made threats of sexual abuse.

11. Forcing shackle into wrist causing injury.

After more months of mistreatment in various facilities Zeeshan was returned to the U.K. in 2006.

Peace.

Full post as published by Never In Our Names on December 23, 2008 (boomark / email).