The Official CIA Interrogation & Manipulation Manual by Central Intelligence Agency

The Official CIA Interrogation & Manipulation Manual by Central Intelligence Agency

This 108-page manual, classified Secret, was drafted in July 1963 as a comprehensive guide for training interrogators in the art of obtaining intelligence from resistant sources. (As indicated above, two versions of the document - declassified 17 years apart - are presented in this posting.) KUBARK - a CIA codename for itself - describes the qualifications of a successful interrogator, and reviews the theory of non-coercive and coercive techniques for breaking a prisoner. Some recommendations are very specific.

The manual recommends, for example, that in choosing an interrogation site the electric current should be known in advance so that transformers and other modifying devices will be on hand if needed. Of specific relevance to the current scandal in Iraq is section nine, The Coercive Counterintelligence Interrogation of Resistant Sources, Under the subheading, Threats and Fears, the CIA authors note that the threat of coercion usually weakens or destroys resistance more effectively than coercion itself. The threat to inflict pain, for example, can trigger fears more damaging than the immediate sensation of pain. Under the subheading Pain, the guidelines discuss the theories behind various thresholds of pain and recommend that a subject's resistance is likelier to be sapped by pain which he seems to inflict upon himself rather than by direct torture. The report suggests forcing the detainee to stand at attention for long periods. A section on sensory deprivations suggests imprisoning detainees in rooms without sensory stimuli of any kind, in a cell which has no light, for example. An environment still more subject to control, such as water tank or iron lung, is even more effective, the KUBARK manual concludes.

Mr. Helgerson was the Central Intelligence Agency's inspector generalfrom 2002 until his retirement in 2009. Previously, he served as chairman ofthe Intelligence Community's National Intelligence Council and deputy directorof the National Imagery and Mapping Agency. Mr. Helgerson began his career in government as an analyst of African politicsat the CIA. At varying posts he headed units responsible for coverage ofAfrica, Latin America, and Europe. He served in a number of senior managementposts, including deputy director for intelligence and director of congressionalaffairs. Prior to his government service, Mr. Helgerson was an assistant professorof political science at the University of Cincinnati and a research affiliate ofthe University of Zambia in Lusaka. He specialized in international relationsand African politics. A native of South Dakota, Mr Helgerson graduated from Saint Olaf Collegein Northfield, Minnesota, and received M.A. and Ph.D degrees from DukeUniversity in Durham, North Carolina. He is the author of Getting To Know the President: CIA Briefings of PresidentialCandidates, 1952-1992. Mr. Helgerson has received a number of awards and commendations, including the National Intelligence Distinguished Service Medal, CIA's DistinguishedCareer Intelligence Medal, and NIMA's Distinguished Civilian Service Award.

SKU	Unavailable
ISBN 13	9781963956238
ISBN 10	1963956230
Title	The Official CIA Interrogation & Manipulation Manual
Author	Central Intelligence Agency
Condition	Unavailable
Binding Type	Paperback
Publisher	Bigfontbooks
Year published	2024-03-25
Number of pages	108
Cover note	Book picture is for illustrative purposes only, actual binding, cover or edition may vary.