Ottawa's Mohamed Harkat, imprisoned for more than two years as a terrorist suspect, suffers major depression and is afflicted by visions of his own torture, according to a psychiatric assessment filed with the Federal Court of Canada.
The psychiatric report forms part of Mr. Harkat's bail application, which begins today when the accused al-Qaeda operative takes the witness stand.
"I believe that Mr. Harkat's mental health is liable to worsen the longer he stays incarcerated," psychiatrist Dr. Colin Cameron concludes. "In particular, his vivid nightmares of facing torture in Algeria have started only since his incarceration."
In those night terrors, he said, Mr. Harkat "even experiences body sensations as if his fingernails are being pulled out or his skin is being scraped off."
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Harkat suffers visions of torture
posted on October 24, 2005 | in Category Mohamed Harkat | PermaLink
Original author: Andrew Duffy
Source: The Ottawa Citizen
URL: [link]
Date: October 24, 2005
Terror suspect suffers visions of torture
psychiatrist: Mohamed Harkat's mental health 'worsening';
applies for bail pending constitutional appeal