EXCLUSIVE: Guantanamo's Chief Interrogator Says 'We Don't Employ Torture'

June 26, 2006 — -- The Supreme Court could rule today on the future of the detainees being held at the U.S. military prison in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. While most Americans continue to favor holding suspected terrorists at the detention, the public overwhelmingly opposes the current terms of their imprisonment.

"Nightline" anchor Terry Moran is at Guantanamo Bay this week, and had the rare opportunity to interview the prison's director of interrogations.

Here is the transcript from "Nightline" on June 26, 2006:

PAUL RESTER, JOINT INTERROGATION GROUPThe entire effort is to be as - I know the - it's hard to fathom this. But as cordial as possible under these circumstances.

TERRY MORANThat slightly grandfatherly civilian there with us is Paul Rester, he'sthe director of the joint interrogations group in Guantanamo Bay. He'sthe man who runs all the interrogations of detainees here, though hedoesn't like to use the word "interrogation." Interrogation is a negative word. What would you call what you do?

PAUL RESTERHere, we are -- we are involved into custodial interviews.

TERRY MORAN Paul Rester has been interrogating or interviewing or questioningAmerica's enemies or suspected enemies for 35 years, going back toVietnam. He is fiercely proud of his work at Guantanamo Bay.

TERRY MORAN When people think about interrogations at Guantanamo Bay, they thinkabout torture.

PAUL RESTERI think that what people forget is that when these individuals were firstbrought here, there were four smoking holes in the ground. We hadindividuals who in fact were party to or witting of, at the time, presentand future, immediate future plans and intentions to continue to do harmagainst the mainland of the United States and the American people or itsinterests abroad. I really think we should give some pause to simplythrowing semantics around and cheapening terms such as torture and humanrights abuses. And really look at the root of what the issues are. TERRY MORAN So, you define torture for me.

PAUL RESTERFor me?

TERRY MORAN No, for the people who are going to be interrogated. What counts as torture?

PAUL RESTERWell, we don't employ torture.

TERRY MORAN What is torture?

PAUL RESTERFor myself, torture is the deliberate and sadistic of mental or physicalpain on another human being. It's as simple as that. For the pure andsimple satisfaction of doing it. It serves no redeeming social value ineliciting concrete information. It serves no redeeming social value in -- in obtaining the knowledge we need to combat this particular enemy.

TERRY MORAN But Rester frankly acknowledges that some of the techniques usedhere pushed the limits, his words, of what is permissible.

TERRY MORAN But there was policy here at Guantanamo Bay that you could put adetainee in stress positions for hours.

PAUL RESTERAgain, when you say a detainee, I want to be perfectly clear, there werespecial plans for specific detainees that allowed certain processes whichare available in the public record.

TERRY MORAN Forcible enemas?

PAUL RESTERExcuse me?

TERRY MORAN A forcible enema?

PAUL RESTERNo, I'm not aware of forcible enemas.

TERRY MORAN That's the allegations...

PAUL RESTERPeople can allege what they want to allege. I've seen any number ofallegations that are -- that are patently outrageous.

TERRY MORANYou short-shackled people to the floor for hours at a time, untilthey soiled themselves?

PAUL RESTERIf you were able to locate the detainee that was allegedly shackled onthe floor in his own excrement, pulling his hair out, because that'swhat's in that e-mail, I think there may be another explanation that isnot related to interrogation. The individual might have been simply ill,you know. I mean, I don't know. TERRY MORAN And as for two of the most explosive allegations that detainees werethreatened with dogs or made to believe they were about to be drowned, atechnique called water boarding?

TERRY MORAN Dogs used here in interrogations?

PAUL RESTERNo.

TERRY MORAN Water boarding?

PAUL RESTERNo. The other event you mentioned...

TERRY MORAN Water boarding.

PAUL RESTERAgain, not of record.

TERRY MORAN Meaning, it's not...

PAUL RESTERIt's not of record. And I have no one who has ever told me or witnessedto me that it took place.

TERRY MORAN What Paul Rester does know, he says, is that the detainees hererepresent a real threat to the United States. And that the interrogationshere have elicited vital information and continue to do so. For instance,this chart from a briefing we got today, outlines the al Qaeda bomb makersofficials say are here at the camp, 15 of them. Officials say roadsidebombs from Iraq and Afghanistan are actually brought here to Guantanamo,where detainees are asked about their designs and who might have helpedmake them.

TERRY MORAN Are you getting anything good? Is there still point ininterrogating these people?

PAUL RESTERYeah. Because they know who's still out there. They know how they dobusiness.

TERRY MORAN For Paul Rester and many Americans here at Guantanamo Bay, gettingthat information is tough business but worth it.

PAUL RESTERThat's what people ought to take away from this. The United Statescontinues to be at-risk. If it doesn't seem to quite aware of it, thenmaybe that's what those of us who are doing this really want. I am notany way disappointed when I go home and my neighbor doesn't know whereGuantanamo is and never heard of a war because that's our job, to keepthem safe.