A Guantanamo Bay prisoner has provided new details of torture under what he calls worsening conditions since President Obama’s election. Chadian national Mohammad al-Qaraani used his prison phone time intended for calling his lawyer to instead reach the Arabic satellite network Al Jazeera.

Mohammad al-Qaraani: “I refused to leave my cell, as they were not granting me my rights. I was only demanding my basic rights, like walking, meeting other inmates, and eating normal food. So a group of six soldiers wearing protective gear and helmets came to my cell. They were accompanied by a soldier carrying a camera and one with tear gas. They had a thick rubber or plastic baton. They beat me with it. They emptied out about two canisters of tear gas on me. After I stopped talking, and tears were flowing from my eyes, I could hardly see or breathe. They then beat me again to the ground. One of them held my head and beat it against the ground. I started screaming to his senior, 'See what he's doing! See what he’s doing!’ His senior started laughing and said, ’He’s doing his job.’ He broke one of my teeth.”

Qaraani was interviewed by the Al Jazeera journalist Sami al-Hajj, who was imprisoned at Guantanamo for over six years. Qaraani repeated claims made by other Guantanamo prisoners and their attorneys that the abuse has worsened since President Obama’s election.

Mohammad al-Qaraani: “This treatment started about twenty days before Obama came into power. And since then, I’ve been subjected to the same treatment almost every day. Since Obama took charge, he has not shown us that anything will change.”

Qaraani was ordered released in January after a judge ruled the Pentagon has failed to provide evidence to justify his imprisonment. He has been held at Guantanamo without charge since 2002.