Saturday, September 8, 2012

The human rights group Human Rights Watch has published a 154-page document accusing the United States of cooperating with Libya under the rule of Muammar Gaddafi, in the interrogation and torture of members of the armed group, Libyan Islamic Fighting Group (LIFG), according to a report in the Huffington Post.

The report alleges that the United States and Libya, together with governments from Africa, Asia, and Europe such as the United Kingdom, collaborated in detaining former members of LIFG living outside Libya then deporting them back to Libya where they were allegedly tortured. According to the report, some of those detained where abused even before the were returned to Libya such as those held in United States military bases in Afghanistan. News reports have revealed that the abuse may have occurred between April 2003 and April 2005.

Upon the release of the document, Human Rights Watch has stated that their key source of information came from a pile of abandoned documents found on September 3, 2011 from the offices of former Libyan intelligence chief Musa Kusa. They also said that they have interviewed 14 former detainees who allege that they were subjected to abuses ranging from waterboarding, sexual assault, stress positions, beatings, and sleep deprivation.