By Dominic Taylor-
Secret images from inside Guantanamo Bay have been released by the Pentagon for the first time.
The never-before-seen images show scenes of men in shackles, blindfolds and ear protectors as they enter the infamous prison facility in the US. The images from 2002 have been obtained via a Freedom of Information request submitted by The New York Times.
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Images of prisoners struggling with guards and restraints being put on prisoners going on hunger strikes to be fed by force have never been released to the public before.
The images reveal blindfolded detainees wearing duct tape who are forcibly being carried into the prison. Other images show detainees kneeling away from officers in prison yards as well as in their cells whilst meals are delivered.
Some of the disturbing images reveal prisoners in their trademark orange uniforms being lifted by army officers as they enter the prison grounds. Reportedly, soldiers at the time found it easy to lift detainees due to malnourishment and emaciation.
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In other images, prisoners can be seen kneeling to pray using military issued mats as prayer rugs. The detainees are seen not only blindfolded, but some with their hands duct taped together, trying to move around in an attempt to see anything past their blindfolds.
The prisoners were given shackles so that the soldiers could move them around more easily. Soldiers at the time noted the prisoners were fairly easy to lift because they may have been malnourished.
One image depicts a medical facility, with numerous prisoners lying in hospital beds whilst still wearing handcuffs.
Restrained Al-Qaeda/Taliban detainee are airlifted aboard a US Air Force (USAF) C-141 Starlifter aircraft from Kandahar, Afghanistan
115th Military Police Battalion (MPB) personnel escort a detainee from a bus for in-processing at the Camp X-Ray detention center
The New York Times also noted that these latest images are only the second time that images have been made available to the public. The first were leaked by WikiLeaks in 2011.
The photos were taken to give Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld and other leaders in Washington a look at the start of the wartime detention and interrogation.
The pictures from 2002 depict many scenes at the controversial prison facility, and none of the detainees pictured have been named or formally identified.
Around 780 men and boys were brought to Guantanamo Bay under the presidency of President George W. Bush, who referred to the prisoners as ‘the worst of the worst’.
Only 18 of these prisoners were ever charged and only five have ever been convicted. Currently, 35 men remain at the prison with 10 awaiting trials to start. During President Barack Obama’s leadership, administrations lowered the amount of people detained although closure of the facility was blocked.
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