Memoir

Guantánamo Diary

Name: Guantánamo Diary
Rating: 4.8 (1000 reviews)
Author: Mohamedou Ould Slahi, edited by Larry Siems

Mohamedou Ould Slahi, edited by Larry Siems

18 minAudio8 insights

What you'll learn

•The detailed personal experience of a detainee in Guantánamo Bay.
•The use and effects of enhanced interrogation techniques and torture.
•The complexities and challenges of legal battles involving indefinite detention.
•How human relationships and empathy persist even in harsh detention settings.
•The power of narrative and writing as tools for resistance and justice.
•The broader implications of post-9/11 detention policies on human rights.
•Insights into the psychological and physical toll of long-term imprisonment.

Who should read this

✓Human rights advocates and activists
✓Students of international law and justice
✓Readers interested in post-9/11 history
✓Those studying the psychology of imprisonment

About this book

A harrowing, firsthand memoir of torture and resilience inside Guantánamo Bay by Mohamedou Ould Slahi.

Did You Know?

“

Mohamedou Ould Slahi wrote the entire 466-page manuscript by hand in his Guantánamo cell over several months.

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Audio Summary

Section 1

The Long Journey Begins: A World of Detention and Uncertainty

3:45

6 Sections

Preview: The Long Journey Begins: A World of Detention and Uncertainty

Imagine being torn from your home, stripped of all control, and thrust into a journey shrouded in secrecy and fear. The odyssey begins not with clarity but with chains, blindfolds, and the cold metal of shackles biting into flesh. Every step is dictated by unseen hands, every breath a reminder of vulnerability. The transport truck feels like a hearse, the air thick with silence and dread. Yet amidst this darkness, a faint warmth offers a glimmer of hope—a blanket, thin but comforting, draped over tired shoulders.

As the plane engines roar, the detainee’s mind drifts to family and past freedoms, conjuring memories to survive the present torment. The relentless physical constraints—hands chained in front, goggles blinding, and the indignity of a diaper—create a surreal nightmare. These measures are not just practical but psychological weapons designed to break spirit and identity.

Landing in Ramstein, Germany, a momentary flicker of familiarity sparks cautious optimism. Yet the journey is far from over. The detainee is shuffled through unknown facilities, subjected to humiliating procedures, and forced to navigate a labyrinth of foreign languages and harsh guards. Each interaction, from the cold medical checks to the curt commands, chips away at dignity.

Yet even in this bleakness, moments of human connection emerge—a guard’s brief kindness, a shared joke, a whispered prayer. These fragments of humanity become lifelines, anchoring the detainee to hope and resilience. Travel, once a symbol of freedom, is now a piece of torture, but the human spirit endures.

This first chapter of the journey sets the stage for the trials ahead, illustrating the brutal mechanisms of control and the quiet strength of endurance. As the detainee arrives at Guantánamo Bay, the story transitions from a journey of movement to one of imprisonment, where the battle for survival takes on new dimensions.

Let us now move into the heart of captivity, where the walls close in and the fight for humanity begins anew.