'UK covered up use of torture in Iraq'

The British government has tried to cover up the use of prohibited interrogation techniques by British soldiers in Iraq, lawmakers say. The Joint Committee on Human Rights, consisted of twelve members from both the House of Commons and the House of Lords, said in a report on Sunday that British troops in Iraq " had used 'conditioning techniques' to maintain the 'shock of capture' in advance of tactical questioning". Wall standing, hooding, subjection to noise, sleep deprivation and deprivation of food and drink constitute the five banned 'conditioning techniques'. They can be used by interrogators to extract information and obtain confessions from detainees under physical and psychological coercion. The methods have been described by human rights groups as torturous, inhumane, and cruel.

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