OTTAWA -Omar Khadr, the only western prisoner still held in the US prison at Guantánamo Bay, broke down and wept when questioned by Canadian interrogators and moaned "Kill me", video footage released yesterday shows.
Mr Khadr, a Canadian, was arrested in Afghanistan in 2002 at the age of 15 and is charged with killing a US medic. The secret video was taken in February 2003 and shows Mr Khadr being questioned by officials from the Canadian Security Intelligence Service spy agency.
"Kill me," Mr Khadr can clearly be heard moaning in a desperate voice as he holds his head in his hands.
Extracts of videos taken over four days of interrogation were released by Mr Khadr's lawyers yesterday after a long battle with the Canadian government.
"It's the cry of a desperate young man. He expected the Canadian officials to take him home," said Dennis Edney, one of Mr Khadr's lawyers.
The footage offers a rare glimpse into the Guantánamo Bay facility, where the United States is holding about 265 prisoners in conditions severely criticised by human rights groups.
Mr Khadr also tells the interrogators "You don't care about me", complains of poor medical treatment and removes his orange jumpsuit to show scars from the serious injuries he suffered during the firefight in Afghanistan in which the medic died.
Critics of Mr Khadr's treatment say he is a child soldier who should be rehabilitated rather than punished. Canadian prime minister Stephen Harper has brushed off calls to intervene with Washington, saying Mr Khadr faces serious charges.
Mr Edney said his client had suffered "torture and abuse" at the hands of the Americans during his time in Guantánamo. Mr Khadr has alleged US interrogators repeatedly threatened to rape him or send him to another country to be raped.
Documents released earlier this month show US authorities deprived Mr Khadr of sleep ahead of a separate interview with an official from Canada's foreign ministry in 2004, moving him every three hours to make him more likely to talk.
"I am hoping that the Canadian people will put aside the issue of whether he is guilty or innocent . . . [and] say 'This is disgraceful, we don't treat young children that way'," Mr Edney told the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. A Canadian judge ruled last month that Mr Khadr had a right to see descriptions of interviews the Canadians conducted with him. - (Reuters)