CIA Halts Use of Harsh Interrogation Ploys- Report

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The CIA has stopped using interrogation techniques such as "stress positions," sleep deprivation and denial of pain medication while the Bush administration reviews their legality, The Washington Post said Sunday.
"The whole thing's been stopped until we can sort out whether we are sure we are on legal ground," the Post quoted a former senior CIA official as saying.

The newspaper said the so-called enhanced interrogation techniques have been used in questioning al Qaeda leaders. The suspension applies to CIA detention facilities around the world.

Questioning of prisoners will continue, the newspaper said, but without use of the techniques.

A CIA spokesman was not immediately available for comment.

The suspension follows a White House decision to review an Aug. 1, 2002, memo that detailed how to avoid violating U.S. and international terror laws while interrogating prisoners.

According to the newspaper, the enhanced interrogation techniques were approved by lawyers from the Justice Department and National Security Council in 2002 and required permission from the CIA director for use.

The government developed them after the military and the CIA began capturing al Qaeda members in Afghanistan.

A former senior Justice Department official said the techniques were not forms of torture because they do not result in significant physical harm or injury.

But prisoners can be led to believe they might be harmed or forced to stand or squat in stressful positions for long periods.

Other techniques include noise and light bombardment and making detainees believe they are being questioned by another government.