Laid Saidi
Encyclopedia
Laid Saidi is an Algeria
n who has claimed that he was imprisoned, for several years, in a CIA black site
in Afghanistan
called "the salt pit".
He was apprehended apparently because of a taped telephone conversation in which the word tayrat, meaning "tires" in colloquial Arabic, was mistaken for a similarly sounding word (with a slightly different "T" sound) meaning "airplanes."
Saidi was imprisoned near Khalid el-Masri
during the five months el-Masri was imprisoned in the salt pit, in a prominent instance of mistaken identity.
Saidi worked for Al-Haramain Foundation
, a Saudi charity organization. He was expelled from Tanzania
in July 2003, and rendered
to Afghanistan.
Saidi said that scars on his wrists were from being suspended from the ceiling by his hands. American officials assert that they stopped using this form of torture after it led to the deaths of two Afghans, Habibullah and Dilawar in Bagram, in December 2002.
Saidi described months of confusing interrogations, during which his interrogators kept insisting that he had spoken cryptically of planes during a telephone conversation. When the tape the Americans had made of this conversation was finally played for him, Saidi described being surprised to realize all these questions and torture were due to a simple misunderstanding, that could have easily been dealt with, without months of torture.
Saidi claims to have spent months in the dark prison
prior to his detention in the salt pit.
Algeria
Algeria , officially the People's Democratic Republic of Algeria , also formally referred to as the Democratic and Popular Republic of Algeria, is a country in the Maghreb region of Northwest Africa with Algiers as its capital.In terms of land area, it is the largest country in Africa and the Arab...
n who has claimed that he was imprisoned, for several years, in a CIA black site
Black site
In military terminology, a black site is a location at which an unacknowledged black project is conducted. Recently, the term has gained notoriety in describing secret prisons operated by the United States Central Intelligence Agency , generally outside of U.S. territory and legal jurisdiction. It...
in Afghanistan
Afghanistan
Afghanistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, is a landlocked country located in the centre of Asia, forming South Asia, Central Asia and the Middle East. With a population of about 29 million, it has an area of , making it the 42nd most populous and 41st largest nation in the world...
called "the salt pit".
He was apprehended apparently because of a taped telephone conversation in which the word tayrat, meaning "tires" in colloquial Arabic, was mistaken for a similarly sounding word (with a slightly different "T" sound) meaning "airplanes."
Saidi was imprisoned near Khalid el-Masri
Khalid El-Masri
Khalid El-Masri is a German citizen who was kidnapped in the Republic of Macedonia, flown to Afghanistan, allegedly beaten, stripped, raped, and interrogated and tortured by the CIA for several months as a part of the War on Terror, and then released...
during the five months el-Masri was imprisoned in the salt pit, in a prominent instance of mistaken identity.
Saidi worked for Al-Haramain Foundation
Al-Haramain Foundation
Al-Haramain Islamic Foundation was a charity foundation, based in Saudi Arabia, alleged by the U.S. Department of the Treasury in a September 2004 press release to have "direct links" with Osama bin Laden...
, a Saudi charity organization. He was expelled from Tanzania
Tanzania
The United Republic of Tanzania is a country in East Africa bordered by Kenya and Uganda to the north, Rwanda, Burundi, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo to the west, and Zambia, Malawi, and Mozambique to the south. The country's eastern borders lie on the Indian Ocean.Tanzania is a state...
in July 2003, and rendered
Extraordinary rendition
Extraordinary rendition is the abduction and illegal transfer of a person from one nation to another. "Torture by proxy" is used by some critics to describe situations in which the United States and the United Kingdom have transferred suspected terrorists to other countries in order to torture the...
to Afghanistan.
Saidi said that scars on his wrists were from being suspended from the ceiling by his hands. American officials assert that they stopped using this form of torture after it led to the deaths of two Afghans, Habibullah and Dilawar in Bagram, in December 2002.
Saidi described months of confusing interrogations, during which his interrogators kept insisting that he had spoken cryptically of planes during a telephone conversation. When the tape the Americans had made of this conversation was finally played for him, Saidi described being surprised to realize all these questions and torture were due to a simple misunderstanding, that could have easily been dealt with, without months of torture.
Saidi claims to have spent months in the dark prison
The Dark Prison
The dark prison is the informal name used by some Guantanamo Bay detainees for a secret prison they claim they were detained in near Kabul, Afghanistan...
prior to his detention in the salt pit.