Former Green Beret and UFC fighter Tim Kennedy has published a video, where he willingly undergoes waterboarding — a torture technique designed to create the feeling of drowning. The reason behind the strange act is that it was meant as an attempt to prove to the public that waterboarding is "not torture" and thus not something that should prevent Gina Haspel from being appointed as director of the CIA.
Warning! The following videos are graphic and may contain scenes that can offend sensibilities
In the video, which lasts for roughly 40 minutes, the Green Beret is has water poured on his face for 10 to 60 seconds. He claims that it is nothing special apart from water getting "at the back of your sinuses running down your eyes and nose," concluding his tweet with "It's not torture."
We did this yesterday for almost 45 minutes. The average pour was anywhere from 10 to 60 sec. You can try to hold your breath but the water pools at the back of your sinuses running down your eyes and nose. Plain and simple. It’s not torture. #CIA #GinaHaspel #waterboarding pic.twitter.com/XtFLYoUgsw
— Tim Kennedy (@TimKennedyMMA) May 12, 2018
"The reason we are doing this […] is for us to have a conversation. Right now, an amazing hero has been appointed to be director of the CIA and because of that, some of the things she has done are being attacked," Kennedy explains.
READ MORE: Trump Praises Gina Haspel for Doing 'Spectacular Job' at Senate Hearing
In the video he also criticized a situation where Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, one of the people behind the organization of the 9/11 attacks, was requested to give a testimony that could affect Haspel appointment.
"The terrorist is supposed to tell us who should run the CIA, that is an endorsement in my book," the Green Beret said.
Gina Haspel was nominated for the post of director of the CIA by Trump, but has faced difficulties while receiving approval from the US Congress. The key stumbling block in her appointment is her role in allowing torture at a black site in Thailand. Haspel has herself vowed that the so-called detention and interrogation program will not resume under her directorship.
