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February 7, 2014

Report: Iraqi Forces Illegally Detaining, Torturing Women 
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A new report says Iraqi authorities are illegally detaining thousands of
Iraqi women and subjecting many to torture, rape and threats of sexual
abuse. Human Rights Watch said women reported being kicked, hung upside
down, beaten on their feet, given electric shocks and sexually assaulted
during interrogations by security forces. Sarah Leah Whitson from Human
Rights Watch described the findings.

Sarah Leah Whitson: "We have found dozens of cases of women who said
they signed confessions due to torture. We have ourselves documented
their torture on their bodies, seen the marks left behind. We have
talked to judges who themselves have verified being put under pressure
to convict women without evidence. In Iraq still, there is an abiding
sense of absolute impunity for the security services, which is blessed
and sanctioned by the government. Until Maliki makes clear that he will
not tolerate torture and abuse, either in Iraq's prisons or in Iraq's
police stations, we can expect this to continue."

 

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