Cheney: 'Can't Claim Perfection' on No-Torture Policy

In this file photo, Saudi national Mohammed al-Qahtani is seen behind the bars during the first...

In this file photo, Saudi national Mohammed al-Qahtani is seen behind the bars during the first hearing in their trial at a court in Sanaa. A Pentagon official acknowledged in an interview published Wednesday that the United States tortured al-Qahtani, a Saudi man who allegedly had hoped to become the "20th hijacker" in the Sept. 11 attacks.

(KHALED FAZAA/AFP/Getty Images)

Treatment of Detainees Now Up to Obama

"The investigations concluded the interrogation methods used at [Guantanamo Bay], including the special interrogation techniques used with Qhatani in 2002, were lawful," the statement said.

"Some of the aggressive questioning techniques used on al Qhatani, although permissible at the time, are no longer allowed in the updated Army field manual."

According to Qahtani's lawyers and military logs that were first reported by Time magazine, Qahtani was subject to severe sleep deprivation, isolation, threats and attacks by dogs and prolonged periods of being held in stress positions.

Crawford's comments are sure to embolden critics of the Bush administration who argue that officials should be held accountable for the treatment of detainees.

Rep. John Conyers, D-Mich., demanded today that the treatment of Qahtani be investigated by a special prosecutor.

Conyers, who chairs the House Judiciary Committee, has argued in the past for a blue ribbon commission to look into accusations of torture. He ramped up his call today to include a special prosecutor as well.

Related

Sources: 'Principals' OK'd Harsh Tactics

'Principals' Defend Tough Tactics

Classified Detainee Memos at Center of Legal War

"When the head of the military commissions declares that charges against a 9/11 conspirator had to be dropped because we tortured him, the need for a bipartisan commission to bring the facts to light -- and for a special prosecutor to ensure accountability -- can no longer be denied," Conyers said in a statement.

That decision will now fall to President-elect Obama.

This past weekend, when ABC News' chief Washington correspondent, George Stephanopoulos, pressed Obama on the topic, Obama left it up to the attorney general nominee Eric Holder.

"My general belief is that when it comes to national security, what we have to focus on is getting things right in the future, as opposed to looking at what we got wrong in the past," Obama told Stephanopoulos.

Critics of the Bush policies want Obama to do more.

"The Bush administration engaged in a far-reaching assault on our nation's freedoms," said Caroline Frederickson, director of the Washington Legislative Center, in a statement.

"The next administration needs to let the world know on day one that this chapter in American policy is over, that America will be an advocate for human rights and that Americans will once again have an America that we can be proud of," Frederickson said. Qahtani remains an inmate at Guantanamo Bay, held without charge.