Rights Group Says U.S. Had Secret Prison In Afghanistan
December 19, 2005
19 December 2005 -- A U.S. human rights group has accused the United States of running a secret prison for terrorism suspects as recently as last year in Afghanistan.
In a report released yesterday, Human Rights Watch said eight suspects now being held in the U.S. detention center at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, had been arrested in countries in Asia and the Middle East and flown to Afghanistan between 2002 and 2004.
The report said the eight men were taken to a prison near Kabul, where they were shackled to walls, kept in darkness for weeks, and deprived food and water for days at a time.
The U.S. Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) did not comment on charges raised in the report. A CIA spokeswoman, Michele Neff, said the "CIA does not torture."
In recent weeks, the Bush administration has faced intense criticism at home and abroad over its treatment of detainees.
(AP/AFP/Reuters)