Tactic Used After It Was Banned

Other detainees could raise similar arguments in military commission cases, as Salim Ahmed Hamdan did in his commission trial that ended yesterday. The judge in that case ruled that some evidence could not be presented because of "coercive" techniques but found that his treatment at Guantanamo, including the frequent flier program, did not affect his statements to interrogators.

Jawad's lawyer, Air Force Maj. David Frakt, said the newly discovered records indicate that "no one actually knows the full scope of the abuses at Guantanamo" and that "all of these allegedly comprehensive investigations were whitewashes."

"This is only the tip of the iceberg," Frakt said. "This program was approved at the highest levels. . . . It suggests that people had simply lost their ability to distinguish right from wrong."

Vincent Warren, executive director of the Center for Constitutional Rights, said he worries that more of the organization's numerous clients at Guantanamo could have faced the frequent flier technique.

"News that this methodology is more widespread than the government has initially acknowledged is troubling but not initially surprising," Warren said. "Things like sleep deprivation are against international law and U.S. domestic law, and all investigators, including those in Congress, need to focus on these issues of programmatic torture."

Staff researcher Julie Tate contributed to this report.