Thousands Held in Prison Without Trial

THE detention of thousands of prisoners without charge in Iraq could increase the risk of torture in jails, Amnesty International has warned.

The group said up to 14,000 people are being held by US and UK forces without charge or trial in breach of international law.

More than 200 have been imprisoned for more than two years, with nearly 4000 imprisoned for 12 months or more.

The number held in Iraq is almost 30 times the 490 held without charge or trial at the controversial Guantanamo Bay base, Amnesty said in its report, Beyond Abu Ghraib: Detention and torture in Iraq.

The 48-page report criticises US and UK forces for justifying internments on the basis of “secretive and unaccountable procedures that detainees are unable to effectively challenge”. Those held are described as “security detainees”.

Kate Allen, UK director of Amnesty International, said: “After the horrors of life under Saddam and then the fresh horror of US prisoner abuse at Abu Ghraib, it is shocking to discover that the Multinational Forces are detaining thousands of people without charge or trial.

“Not only have there been recent cases of prisoners being tortured in detention, but to hold this huge number of people without basic legal safeguards is a gross dereliction of responsibility on the part of both the US and UK forces.”