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emalda's review against another edition
4.0
At first I wondered why anyone would want to read 450 pages of torture description but luckily only about 100p of the book was as painful as I had been expecting. Mostly because it pains the reader to think that this is happening all over the world as we speak. And even worse stuff too. Working at Amnesty doesn't make it any easier to deal with the idea of torture either.
Yet, I still wanted to read this because seeing inside the head of an intelligent and educated man experiencing all this shit, yet making fun of things, befriending his guards and contemplating about life, brings the experience more closer in a concrete form. It makes me feel bad that Mohamedoud is still there and that many people still don't get what's wrong with the system. But I now feel the things I work for (human rights and religious equality to mention a few) are all the more important and while my help is very minor, reading this makes me feel like it is the right thing to do to fight ignorance and the utter stupidity of humanity.
I really hope this book finds ppl with prejudices and that they will see more meaning to it than a conspiracy or deceit they often see everywhere else. And I don't mean just Americans but any extremist anywhere.
Yet, I still wanted to read this because seeing inside the head of an intelligent and educated man experiencing all this shit, yet making fun of things, befriending his guards and contemplating about life, brings the experience more closer in a concrete form. It makes me feel bad that Mohamedoud is still there and that many people still don't get what's wrong with the system. But I now feel the things I work for (human rights and religious equality to mention a few) are all the more important and while my help is very minor, reading this makes me feel like it is the right thing to do to fight ignorance and the utter stupidity of humanity.
I really hope this book finds ppl with prejudices and that they will see more meaning to it than a conspiracy or deceit they often see everywhere else. And I don't mean just Americans but any extremist anywhere.
jmltgu's review against another edition
4.0
A fascinating must-read; I have no idea the degree to which this account is true, but it is an important place to put one's mind in when evaluating the way America is perceived in other parts of the world, as well as in the larger context of many different conflicts.
For my part, I hope there is resolution - America is many things, but this book will make you think pretty hard through some of the less-savory aspects of her recent past.
For my part, I hope there is resolution - America is many things, but this book will make you think pretty hard through some of the less-savory aspects of her recent past.
itsaba's review against another edition
Guantanamo Diary is the first-hand account of Mohamedou Ould Slahi's time spent not only in Guantanamo Bay, but within the confines of a variety of prisons and detention centres across several countries - all at the behest of the US government.
The book was written and published while he was still in detention, which accounts for all the redactions within the text. It is made digestible only by knowing that Slahi has now been released after 14 years.
Granted, Slahi had sworn a pledge to al-Qaeda in the 90s - which might sound alarming if you fail to remember that jihad was backed by the US at that time. Slahi's main fault, as it is made remarkably clear throughout the book, is that he knew some of the wrong people and had attended the wrong Mosque.
Slahi surrendered himself. He was detained, interrogated and tortured for over a decade without any charge or evidence against him. Evidently, this was the case for a good portion of the detainees - people who were captured and turned over to US forces without due judicial process, and then interrogated until they provided false confessions implicating themselves and other innocent Muslims.
Note that this was torture so bad that even the FBI disagreed with their tactics, and they were referred to as detainees, not prisoners, just so they could try to evade international laws protecting prisoners of war.
Despite this, Slahi’s narration is compassionate, sharp and reliable - evidenced by Larry Siem’s footnotes, which match his claims to reports that were published detailing his capture and "Special Interrogation Plan.” His faith, humour and resistance are sustained throughout the manuscript. The book is important reading for anyone interested in the War on Terror and gives a personal testimony of its human cost.
mdpbernal's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
informative
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
5.0
hananhn's review against another edition
3.0
This is the diary of a young Muslim man who was imprisoned and tortured by the US government. It is the first and only work by a still-imprisoned detainee at Guantánamo. The book revealed shocking and sad details about the harsh interrogations and torture that he endured without clear accusations. Despite the heavy censorship of the book, there were a lot to learn but not enough to come to conclusion.
thefriendlyabyss's review against another edition
4.0
There is much to be said about this book, beginning with the simple fact that is even having a chance to read about Slahi’s experience in the first place is nothing short of a miracle, let alone the brutal torture he suffered at the hands of the US government.
This is required reading for anyone interested in foreign policy and the insanity that 9/11 sparked in American government and the US public. The US kidnapped hundreds of Muslim foreign nationals from their own countries, imprisoned them, and tortured them all with out being charged with any crime.
It’s a tragedy and one that we’ll have to own up to eventually. In the meantime, I can’t recommend this book enough. Please read MOS’s harrowing story.
This is required reading for anyone interested in foreign policy and the insanity that 9/11 sparked in American government and the US public. The US kidnapped hundreds of Muslim foreign nationals from their own countries, imprisoned them, and tortured them all with out being charged with any crime.
It’s a tragedy and one that we’ll have to own up to eventually. In the meantime, I can’t recommend this book enough. Please read MOS’s harrowing story.
rebeccawolfe's review against another edition
3.0
I don't buy his claim of zero involvement, but the way he has been treated is horrific.
heavenwallgate's review against another edition
This is a really important story and I want to finish it someday but I don’t have the time or emotional capacity for it right now :(
preetachag's review against another edition
4.0
https://preetachag.wordpress.com/2019/04/28/guantanamo-diary/