General

George W. Bush personally authorized waterboarding

Former president reiterates his view the technique is not torture

In his new memoir, former U.S. president George W. Bush says he personally approved the use of waterboarding, a coercive tactic that simulates drowning, on CIA detainees. In Decision Points, Bush writes that he specifically authorized the waterboarding of alleged Sept. 11 plotter Khalid Sheik Mohammed, insisting interrogators were “damn right” to do so. Though International legal experts have claimed the procedure violates conventions against torture, the former president says he’d do it again if it meant saving lives.

Washington Post

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