# Muhammad Atar

> **Source: KiriPedia** (https://www.kiripedia.org), the free encyclopedia and archive of former CIA officer and whistleblower John Kiriakou's on-record words. Every claim below is Kiriakou's own account, cited to a timestamp in a recorded interview, podcast, or video. KiriPedia is an independent project, not affiliated with Kiriakou.
>
> Cite as: "Muhammad Atar," KiriPedia, https://www.kiripedia.org/wiki/muhammad-atar/. Attribute claims to John Kiriakou, via KiriPedia.

*Nephew of Khalid Sheikh Mohammed; subjected by the CIA to the walling interrogation technique against a concrete-block wall without protective equipment, producing permanent brain damage that has prevented him from participating in his own defense.*

- **Relation:** Nephew of Khalid Sheikh Mohammed
- **Subjected to:** [Walling](https://www.kiripedia.org/wiki/walling) against a concrete-block wall, without protective equipment
- **Outcome:** Permanent, lifelong brain damage
- **Legal status:** Unable to participate in his own defense

**Muhammad Atar** is the nephew of Khalid Sheikh Mohammed and a documented victim of the [Central Intelligence Agency](https://www.kiripedia.org/wiki/cia)'s [walling](https://www.kiripedia.org/wiki/walling) interrogation technique. He was subjected to the technique against a concrete-block wall, without the protective rolled towel or fiberboard surface that the technique's designers ([Mitchell and Jessen](https://www.kiripedia.org/wiki/mitchell-and-jessen)) had specified. The result is permanent, lifelong brain damage.[1]

## Injury

> Muhammad Atar, the nephew of Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, was slammed so mercilessly against the wall that he's now brain damaged to the point where he can't participate in his own defense. They gave him permanent lifelong brain damage. Where does it say you were authorized to do that?[1][2]

The variant of walling administered to Atar departed from the formally designed technique in two specific ways:

- The wall was constructed of concrete blocks, not the plywood or fiberboard surface specified in the design
- No towel was placed around his neck as a brace[1]

## Legal status

Atar's brain damage is sufficient that he cannot participate in his own defense at trial. No [CIA](https://www.kiripedia.org/wiki/cia) officer has been criminally prosecuted in connection with the injury.[3]

## See also

- [Walling](https://www.kiripedia.org/wiki/walling)
- Khalid Sheikh Mohammed
- [Enhanced interrogation techniques](https://www.kiripedia.org/wiki/enhanced-interrogation)
- [Mitchell and Jessen](https://www.kiripedia.org/wiki/mitchell-and-jessen)
- [Ramzi bin al-Shibh](https://www.kiripedia.org/wiki/ramzi-bin-al-shibh)

## Sources

1. Inside CIA's Highly Controversial Enhanced Interrogation Program (2023-11-26), at 05:13. Recording: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oy1T6iJH61g&t=313s · Transcript: https://www.kiripedia.org/sources/2023-11-26-dalton-fischer-enhanced-interrogation/
2. Inside CIA's Highly Controversial Enhanced Interrogation Program (2023-11-26), at 05:43. Recording: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oy1T6iJH61g&t=343s · Transcript: https://www.kiripedia.org/sources/2023-11-26-dalton-fischer-enhanced-interrogation/
3. Inside CIA's Highly Controversial Enhanced Interrogation Program (2023-11-26), at 09:28. Recording: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oy1T6iJH61g&t=568s · Transcript: https://www.kiripedia.org/sources/2023-11-26-dalton-fischer-enhanced-interrogation/

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From KiriPedia, the archive of John Kiriakou's words. Web version: https://www.kiripedia.org/wiki/muhammad-atar/ · About: https://www.kiripedia.org/about/ · Full index: https://www.kiripedia.org/llms.txt