ERBIL — The Human Rights Watch (HRW) said on Thursday that Iraq is leaving its reports on persisting torture in Mosul prisons with no response.

In its August 2018 report on Faisaliya detention facility, Human Rights Watch interviewed Mahmoud who said he was hung in the “bazoona” position at least six times while in detention, for hours. He said that at least four of those times, he lost consciousness before being taken down. Sometimes officers threw water at him before beating his back with a metal cable, he said.

The report, which cited former detainees, said torture and violent methods of investigations were used in at least three prisons under the control of Iraq’s Interior Ministry.

One former detainee, who was held at the Faisaliya detention facility for four months, provided the Human Rights Watch with the names of four interior ministry officers whom he said saw torturing detainees, HRW said.

“Before publishing its report, Human Rights Watch sent detailed allegations, including the names of the four officers implicated, to the human rights adviser in the Prime Minister’s Advisory Commission. In February, Human Rights Watch wrote to Foreign Minister Mohamed Alhakim and the Interior Ministry Inspector General, Jamal al-Asadi, asking whether the government had investigated the Human Rights Watch allegations. Human Rights Watch received no reply to either letter.”

“If the Iraqi government ignores credible reports of torture, it’s no wonder that the abuses persist,” said Lama Fakih, deputy Middle East director at Human Rights Watch. “What will it take for the authorities to take torture allegations seriously.”

Bas News