Interrogation

Interrogation History, Assets, and Doctrine

The U.S. military acquired significant experience in HUMINT collection during World War II when it conducted prisoner-of-war interrogations on a mass scale. Employing linguistically and culturally competent interrogators, the U.S. Army effectively questioned German and Japanese prisoners without the use of coercion. The Joint Interrogation Center at Fort Hunt, Virginia, secretly debriefed thousands of German government officials, military officers, and scientists, pioneering many innovative interrogation and eavesdropping techniques along the way. Likewise, the experiences of the Luftwaffe interrogator Hanns-Joachim Scharff (who amicably questioned captured Allied pilots) exerted considerable influence on U.S. military practices after World War II. Many of Scharff’s noncoercive, rapport-based interrogation techniques form the foundation of today’s HUMINT methodology. These practices were continued in Vietnam, Grenada, Panama, and the Persian Gulf.

Although every service branch of the U.S. military has indigenous HUMINT collection assets, the battlefield resources of the army are the most operationally diverse. Officially called “human intelligence collectors,” army interrogators are primarily soldiers, noncommissioned officers, and warrant officers and are supported by commissioned officers and federal civilian employees in the intelligence field. [Page 692]They are responsible for interrogating prisoners of war and other detainees, debriefing civilians and friendly forces, and processing captured enemy documents and materiel. At the U.S. Army Intelligence Center at Fort Huachuca, Arizona, interrogators at all levels undergo a rigorous training program in HUMINT collection methodology, applicable U.S. and international law, the order of battle analysis, cultural awareness, and warfighting skills. Some interrogators also receive extensive foreign language training at the Defense Language Institute in Monterey, California. As a result of the Global War on Terrorism, the army’s interrogation force will increase to more than 7,000 by 2013, alongside the activation of three new HUMINT collection battalions with dedicated interrogation teams.

Based on wartime experiences in Afghanistan and, later, in Iraq, army interrogators may operate as small, mobile HUMINT collection teams that canvass the battlefield with combat units. They are, however, primarily located at fixed, long-term interrogation facilities—called Joint Interrogation and Debriefing Centers—within larger military detention complexes. Interrogators may be assisted by certified army interpreters or civilian contractors who possess the necessary linguistic and cultural competence for HUMINT operations. Interrogators also work closely with military police, who process and safeguard prisoners of war and other detainees. Although they may provide information on interpersonal relationships, military police personnel are strictly forbidden to participate in or “soften up” individuals for interrogations.

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