Multimedia Mania/abacus-multimedia-mania.iso/dp/0039/00396.txt

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$Unique_ID{bob00396}
$Pretitle{}
$Title{Kuwait
Appendix A.   Testimonies of Eight Torture Victims}
$Subtitle{}
$Author{Amnesty International}
$Affiliation{Amnesty International}
$Subject{taken
room
kuwait
police
told
asked
days
put
soldiers
station}
$Date{1990}
$Log{}
Title:       Kuwait
Book:        Iraq/Occupied Kuwait Human Rights Violations Since 2 August
Author:      Amnesty International
Affiliation: Amnesty International
Date:        1990

Appendix A.   Testimonies of Eight Torture Victims

TESTIMONY A1

     A former interrogator in his early 30s, arrested on 22 September after
being found in possession of a leaflet giving information on chemical weapons.
He was detained for one week, principally at al-Farwaniyya police station in
Kuwait City and subjected to beatings, kicking, burning of the skin and sexual
torture.

     "I was arrested on 22 September, just as my family and I had set off for
Saudi Arabia. We live in Kifan. We were driving through al-`Umairiyya when we
were stopped at a checkpoint. The Iraqis searched the car, and found a leaflet
giving information about chemical weapons. They took me to al-`Umairiyya
Primary School, where I was blindfolded and left for one day. Next day I was
taken to al-Farwaniyya police station, where I used to work as an interrogator
before the invasion. It was about 11.30am. I was blindfolded and handcuffed.
Almost immediately they began hitting me, and I was subjected to beatings on
the soles of my feet (falaga). They burned my skin with a hot metal rod. The
interrogator kept asking me about the leaflet found in my car, and I denied
knowing anything about it.

     The following day I was beaten once again. This time they used a cane, an
electric cable and another wooden implement with which they hit me on my rib
cage until one of my ribs was fractured. The soldiers also kicked me on the
pelvis with their army boots. By that time my body was blue with bruises, and
my nose was bleeding. Then they tied a string around my penis and asked me to
"confess" as they pulled the string tighter. They threatened me with
execution, and with the rape of my sister. Then one of the officers said,
"Bring the bottle". They spread my legs and began inserting the top of the
bottle into my anus.

     In the evening they locked me up in a filthy cell on my own. The
dishdasha I was wearing was covered with blood. There was also blood in my
urine. I was left in the cell for three days, and then they took me to
al-Jahra' police station. I was beaten there once again, and this lasted for
about one hour and a half. An officer there threatened me with the electric
chair (al-Kursi al-Rajjaj). After the torture came to an end, they forced me
to insult the (Kuwaiti) government and to declare allegiance to Saddam. They
told me I must cooperate with them, and I had to sign a statement to that
effect before I was finally released."

TESTIMONY A2

     A 17-year-old student arrested in early September after being found in
possession of a gun and leaflets containing information on weaponry. He was
detained for 36 days in several detention centres in Kuwait City and later in
Basra and subjected to beatings, mock execution, falaga, electric shocks and
threatened with sexual torture.

     [He was arrested by Iraqi special forces at a checkpoint at Khaitan
Bridge, near Khaitan Sports Club, at 3pm in the afternoon. He was found in
possession of a gun and 150 copies of a leaflet containing instructions on the
use of rockets and explosives. The leaflet contained the official stamp of the
Kuwaiti National Guard].

     "They took hold of me quickly and began hitting me. They locked me up in
the boot of my car for about half an hour, then they took me out and tied me
up with a rope with my hands behind my back". [Several other military
personnel then arrived.] "They put me back in the boot of my car and placed a
tyre over my chest and took me to Khaitan police station. There, they took me
out of the car and led me to an office where there were seven lieutenants. On
the way to the office they kicked me and hit me with their hands. They
threatened me with death and torture if I did not tell them where I had got
the gun and leaflets and who my friends were. In the pockets of my trousers
they found emblems used by the Iraqi Special Forces and the emblem used by
the Iraqis on their hats. They asked me about who the members of the
resistance were, and whom I had killed and where. I insisted on saying one
thing, that I had got the emblems from some soldiers as a souvenir and that I
came across the gun and leaflets by chance. I said I was passing by close to
the National Guards building in al-Khaldiyya were I saw the gun and leaflets.
They did not believe me. They had bound my eyes so that I could not see
anything. The soldiers kicked me as they passed by me.

     After that they removed the blindfold. The officer had with him four
soldiers carrying their weapons, which were Kalashnikov machine guns. The
officer told me, "Pray for your soul because you are going to be executed",
and he gave orders to the four soldiers to load the guns and fire. They
loaded, but when they pulled the trigger it turned out that the ammunition
was blank. The officer told me to smile and that it was my luck that the
ammunition was defective. He was laughing. They took me to a room where there
were about fifteen Iraqi soldiers. (The officer) said to them, "He is the one
who carried out yesterday's operation and killed our comrades". So they
started beating me up, they kicked me, punched me and slapped my face and beat
me with canes. This lasted from five o'clock until nine o'clock in the
evening. I saw the clock pointing to nine in Abu Khaled's office. He is in
charge of the police station and his rank is that of major. He asked me "How
are you? Answer me regarding the gun and the leaflets". I gave him the same
answer, so he ordered them to take off all my clothes except for my shorts.
Then he started hitting me with a black rubber stick, and every time I stepped
away from him the other officers hit me with an electric baton.

     After that they blindfolded me and hit me in the same way. Then they
subjected me to falaga on my feet until they turned blue. ...I was subjected
to electric shocks for a brief period and I felt my body tremble and fell to
the floor. I was able to see a little through my blindfold which was white and
was raised a little over my eyes. [The officer] placed a wire on my nipple and
stuck it on. Then he took hold of the other end and applied electricity four
times. I lost consciousness, and when I came round I was being whipped. [The
officer] then applied electricity to my toes while repeating "Confess and tell
us what you know"... [Then one of them] came in and put a bottle of whisky on
the table. They brought a bucket with a sponge in it... He gave orders to
remove my shorts and to place the bottle in my anus. So I said I would
confess .... and I repeated what I had said before. He asked me about the
leaflets, and I said that I had seen the leaflets in my car but I did not know
who was distributing them."

     [He was then asked about named individuals and families, where they lived
or where they could be found. He said he did not know. He was also asked about
the locations of resistance activity. He gave the names of two districts
where he knew there was no such activity].

     "They told me that if I brought them an Indian or Filipino woman they
would release me. They laughed among themselves and two of them carried me
(for I was unable to stand up) back to the cell and gave me back my clothes
which I put on... After three days they transferred me to a house [a private
house belonging to a member of the al-Sabah family]... There were Indians and
Kuwaitis with me. There was one guard standing over us. There were two women
there, one was elderly and the other about 25 years old. At noon they took me
to another place which I believe was the Iraqi Embassy in Kuwait... I was
handcuffed and blindfolded. They asked me the same questions while beating me
with a stick. I did not change my answers. They took me back to Khaitan police
station and put me in the officers' room with them. They were laughing and
making jokes. In the evening they transferred me to al-Farwaniyya police
station... They told me it would only be for two days and then I would be
released. The following evening after interrogation and beating they returned
me to Khaitan police station... When we arrived at Khaitan they told me that I
was to be released tomorrow and that they had my release papers, and in fact
I saw these papers bearing my name. At midnight I was summoned by Abu Khaled,
the head of the police station, who said to me that the statements I had made
were not acceptable. He tore up the release papers...

     They took me back to al-Farwaniyya and threw me back in the same room
where I stayed four days... then they took us out of the room and brought in
four Iraqi soldiers whose hair, eyebrows and moustaches had been shaved. The
guards were beating them, saying that they were traitors and had brought shame
upon their families. We were put in another room... for fifteen days and then
they transferred four of us to the district of al-Jahra'... they beat us up
for the whole day... they pierced our skin with pins... and forced us to
dance... Then I was told, "You will be dead tomorrow. Write a letter to your
family. What sort of execution do you want, electric, by shooting or by
hanging?". A soldier said, "We have a new method which is the acid bath, or
else we can knife them until they die..."

     [Eventually] I was transferred with twenty others to Basra. They led us
into a building and made us stand in the corridors... they subjected us to the
worst forms of torture... there were four women there... I heard their screams
and cries. After the interrogation and beating I was told that my name was not
[registered with them]. So I stayed one day in Basra and then they transferred
me back to the Municipality Building in al-Jahra' [in Kuwait]... and then
they transferred me with 30 others to the Juveniles Prison [in the al-Firdos
district of Kuwait]... In the Juveniles Prison there were 160 detainees,
among them ... [names withheld by Amnesty International]. The charge against
many of them was the distribution of food (meat and chicken) to the people.
[After spending a further three days in the municipality building in
al-Jahra'] they transferred us to Muhafazat al-'Asima where we were examined.
I hid the traces of torture on my body in order to avoid being executed,
because anybody who has clear traces of torture on his body or is suffering
from permanent damage is executed. After the examination was over we had to
give an undertaking to cooperate with the Iraqi authorities. Then I was
released."

TESTIMONY A3

     A 32-year-old office clerk arrested on 3 August as he returned home after
buying foodstuffs from the local cooperative society. He was detained for five
days at al-Sulaibiyya police station in Kuwait City and subjected to beatings
and electric shocks, and was shot in the leg at point blank range.

     "On 3 August, the second day of the invasion, I was supposed to take one
of my children to the hospital in al-Farwaniyya for a check-up. When I
arrived there I was prevented from entering. I tried to go to a pharmacy, but
the roads were closed. In the afternoon I went to the cooperative society in
our district to get some foodstuffs. On the way back to my home I was stopped
by Iraqi soldiers. They took the milk and other food I had bought, blindfolded
me and took me to al-Sulaibiyya police station.

     When I entered the police station, I was taken into a room where about 70
Kuwaitis were held. There were young boys among them, below the age of 18. I
recognized a friend of mine among them, and I understood that he had been
arrested in circumstances similar to mine. Each detainee was interrogated
individually. I was told to wait my turn.

     There were three officers in the interrogation room when I went in. One
asked the questions, another took notes and the third stood by the door,
holding a gun. I was asked for my nationality card. Then the officer asked me,
"Are you happy with the situation [ie, the situation in Kuwait] in which you
find yourselves?" I replied: "Yes, we are fine". The officer then said, "We
are here to help you in the uprising". When I replied that there had been no
uprising, the officer standing by the door hit me on the head with his rifle.
I was immediately taken to another room where I was subjected to torture for
about one hour. They applied electricity to my fingers and genitals, and I was
beaten with sticks. My friend whom I had seen earlier was brought into the
room. One of the officers said "Execute them", but another officer replied,
"No, only one of them". So they shot my friend there and then, in front of me.
They shot me in my left leg. I received no treatment for the wound until my
release five days later.

     I was returned to a cell measuring 2 x 3 metres. Several Kuwaiti
detainees were there, all of whom bore marks of torture. They gave us dry
bread to eat. Five days later I was summoned again. I was told that if I
tried to leave Kuwait I would be executed. I was asked to put my fingerprint
on a piece of paper containing a prepared statement and then I was released.
When I returnedto my house I found that the Iraqis had stolen most of its
contents. Apparently, in my absence, they had gone to the house and told my
wife that I had decided to give away our possessions. When my wife objected,
one of the Iraqis hit her. They took our furniture and even my wife's wedding
ring. Eight days after my release, my family and I left for Saudi Arabia.

TESTIMONY A4

     A 22-year-old student arrested on 24 August following house-to house
searches in the al-Rawda district of Kuwait City. He was detained for eight
days in al-Rawda and al-Farwaniyya police stations, and subjected to
beatings, kicking, falaga; cigarettes were extinguished on his body and his
leg was slashed with a knife.

     "I was arrested on 24 August. Iraqi soldiers were searching all houses in
the area where I lived (al-Rawda) and arresting a number of men. It was a
Friday and I was at home. They knocked on the door and when I opened it they
arrested me. I was put in the back of a lorry together with others who had
been rounded up. We were not allowed to talk to each other. We were taken to
al-Rawda police station. I was put in a cell measuring 3 x 5 metres together
with eight other detainees. We were all blindfolded and our hands and feet
tied. For a while I also had a rope put around my neck, and which was tied
to the ceiling. We remained in the cell for two days, during which we were
beaten by guards. Groups of four or five guards would enter the cell and start
hitting us with their hands, and sometimes they kicked us with their heavy
army boots. They threatened us with electrical torture. I knew one of the
detainees in my cell. His names is ... [name withheld by Amnesty
International], a Kuwaiti aged about 24. His father was a lieutenant in the
National Guard. He was beaten very badly and suffered broken legs as a result.
They only gave us bread to eat.

     On Sunday morning I was taken to another room. Two Iraqis, both with the
rank of captain, interrogated me. One of them asked the questions and the
other tortured me. I was asked to name people who were active in the
resistance. When I said I did not know anyone in the resistance, they
threatened that they would arrest my two younger brothers (aged 14 and 15).
One of them began beating the soles of my feet with a cane, and then he forced
me to walk around the room. He also extinguished cigarettes on my upper left
arm and on the left side of my chest, traces of which are still apparent. He
also cut my left thigh with a knife.

     After that I did not return to the cell. I was put in a car (a Toyota
Saloon) and driven to al-Farwaniyya police station. I was put in a room which
contained torture equipment. It was mainly electrical equipment, wires and
electrodes like those used to recharge car batteries but smaller in size. I
was told to sit down, and I was left alone for about one hour. I did not know
what was happening, but I could hear screams from nearby rooms. There was a
lot of blood on the floor, particularly in the corners of the room. After one
hour I was taken to the airport. A Palestinian in the Iraqi army, with the
rank of lieutenant, came with us. When we arrived at the airport an Iraqi
officer took me to a toilet and said to me, "This is where Kuwaitis belong".
I was made to stay in the toilet for about a quarter of an hour. Everything
was broken. While waiting I noticed some discarded uniforms previously worn
by Kuwaiti Airways stewardesses. I could hear the sounds of people screaming
even here at the airport.

     I was then taken to an office, where the Palestinian lieutenant and the
Iraqi officer were seated. I was asked again about whom I knew in the
resistance. I refused to give any information. The Iraqi officer then put a
gun to my head and said while laughing, "You are about to die". They then
brought a video camera, and gave me a piece of paper which contained
statements against the [Kuwaiti] government. For example, it said that the
government was corrupt and that the Kuwaiti people had been oppressed until
their liberation by Iraq. They told me to memorize the statement in
preparation for filming. After the filming was over, they asked me to
cooperate with them as an informer. I them I could not do that if theytold
used the film because the resistance would not trust me. They agreed not to
use it and allowed me to telephone my family. My mother and brother came to
the airport to collect me. The Iraqi officer and the Palestinian lieutenant
came with us, and we dropped them off at al-Salmiyya police station. The
Palestinian lieutenant told me to return to al-Farwaniyya police station that
evening and bring him babies' milk. When I went there with the milk, I was
detained for another two days. I was kept in an office, not a cell, and I was
not tortured again.

     After my release, I returned home. The Iraqis kept contacting me to make
sure that I had not fled, and to threaten me that if I failed to cooperate
with them they would arrest my family. They said they would also arrest me
and take me to Fao. I managed to leave Kuwait almost three weeks after my
release. At the Kuwaiti-Saudi Arabian border I was told to turn back, as no
males were being allowed to leave. I gave one of the soldiers 100 Iraqi
dinars and some cigarettes and he let me through."

TESTIMONY A5

     A 38-year-old man arrested on 5 September after another detainee
allegedly revealed that he was active in the armed resistance. He was detained
for one week at the Kuwait General Staff headquarters in the al-Shuwaikh
district of the city and later in Basra. He was subjected to beatings, mock
execution, exposure to hot and cold temperatures, electric shocks and
suspension from a rotating fan.

     "I was arrested on about 5 September. A treacherous person in
al-Jabiriyya informed about me. I was in the armed resistance. On the day of
my arrest I was armed and travelling in one of the cars used by the
resistance. I was alone. I was stopped at a checkpoint. One of the Iraqi
soldiers asked me: "Are you .... [he mentioned my name]?". I realised that
they knew about me and I drove away at top speed. The soldiers began shooting.
At the next checkpoint there were about 30 soldiers. I did not stop and they
pursued me. They fired in the direction of my car, as a result of which one
of the tyres was punctured. The soldiers caught up with me and dragged me out
of the car. They tied my hands and feet and blindfolded me with a piece of
green cloth.

     I was taken to the Kuwait General Staff headquarters in al-Shuwaikh,
where the blindfold was removed. I was brought before an Iraqi captain.
Without asking me any questions he started hitting me Karate-style, then he
said, "Execute him". This was about 8 o'clock in the evening. I was beaten
for about a quarter of an hour, and then taken into a courtyard where I saw a
firing squad consisting of three soldiers. An officer read out the charges
against me: he accused me of treason against my country and of having stolen
arms and ammunition. The soldiers then pointed their rifles at me; I was still
without a blindfold. One shot was fired, deliberately missing me. The officer
said, "Stop, the interrogation is not over".

     They locked me up in a room for about one hour. Then I was taken to
another room which had four air conditioning units. I was practically
naked, wearing nothing except a sirwal [inner clothing]. They turned on the
air conditioning and left me there for several hours, until dawn. Then they
took me to another room which was very hot.

     After that I was interrogated. They asked me questions about the
resistance, they wanted information about the cells within the resistance,
the names of activists, etc.. They also tried to force me to make statements
against the (Kuwaiti) ruling family. I remained silent. At 7:30 am the
following morning, I was blindfolded and pushed into a car. During the drive
I was occasionally beaten. When the blindfold was later removed, I found
myself in Basra in Iraq. I was taken to a detention centre where both men and
women were held. Almost immediately I was subjected to lashing with a whip.
Then two officials brought me some food, which consisted of bread and tea,
and they gave me a cigarette. One of them spoke to me in a brusque and harsh
manner, the other was polite. The official who spoke harshly told me that I
must confess to being a member of the National Guard, to being in the
resistance, etc. He said that if I confessed, I would be given Iraqi
nationality and if I didn't confess I would be executed within half an hour.
Then he left the room. The polite officer then advised me not to confess. I
replied that I had nothing to confess to. While this was going on I could
hear the sounds of women screaming under torture.

     After a while three men entered the room. One of them carried a bucket
of very hot water. First they beat me up by using Karate blows until I lost
consciousness. Then all three men lifted me up in the air and dropped me on
the ground. My head hit the ground and my jaw broke as a result. By that time
I was bleeding profusely and vomiting blood. At this point they immersed my
head in the hot water about six or seven times, all the while ordering me to
confess. I repeated that I would not confess. Then they left me unconscious.
After several hours another group of men entered the room. One of them
attacked me with a sharp implement, cutting my face and arms. Then they beat
me with hosepipes and electric cables. After that they gave me two pills to
swallow, which they called `confession tablets'. These pills were supposed
to calm me down, but they did not seem to have any effect on me.

     Then they put me in a cell on my own. The room measured about 2 x 3
metres and had a small window. The following day they tortured me with
electricity. First they poured water on my body and then applied the
electricity. Then they placed electrodes on my toes and genitals. I was taken
for interrogation once again. Finally one of them said that there was no use
in interrogating me further and that I was to be prepared for execution.
However, they took me to another room which had a fan in the ceiling. I was
turned upside down and my ankles were tied to the fan, which was then
switched on. I spun around two or three times and then I was taken down. I
was taken back to the cell and left alone for two days.

     After that I was put in a car and driven back to Kuwait. I was taken to
the Mudiriyyat al-Amn al-`Amn (General Intelligence Directorate), close to
Nayef Palace, which is now a detention centre. I was made to sign various
papers and was then released. After my release I was warned by various people
that I was under surveillance and that I would be re-arrested and executed.
So I fled Kuwait and went to Saudi Arabia."

TESTIMONY A6

     A man in his 30s arrested twice, in the third week of August and later on
20 September and accused of being a member of the Kuwaiti armed forces and of
having participated in opposition activities. He was held for four days in
a school and at al-Jahra' police station in Kuwait City, and subjected to
beatings, kicking, electric shocks and the placing of heavy weights on his
body.

     "I was first arrested during the third week of August, in a residential
area. It was in the middle of the day, about 12 o'clock. I was alone in my
car, and I was stopped by soldiers. They ordered me out of the car and accused
me of being in the resistance. They took me to a school which had been turned
into a military barracks. I was taken into a large hall, where I saw about 100
Kuwaiti detainees. All were men and were hardly wearing any clothes. They were
surrounded by guards.

     The following day I was taken to the police station, where I was
tortured. Three officers interrogated me. They asked for my personal details.
I was kicked and beaten with a rifle butt. They accused me of being in the
army and in the resistance. The interrogation session lasted for several
hours. Then they took me to another room, where they applied electricity to my
hands, feet and genitals. I fainted as a result of the electric shocks. I was
then interrogated once again. They asked me the same questions. One of them
punched me in the mouth with his elbow, and one of my teeth broke as a result.

     They took me to a large cell, where I was held on my own. The beating
continued intermittently throughout the day and night. I was beaten
particularly on my back. The soldiers stepped on me with their heavy army
boots and they placed heavy weights on my body. The following morning one of
the officers came to fetch me. He gave me a cigarette and then told me to
start walking. I thought he was going to shoot me since he was carrying a
machine gun. He told me to go to the bathroom, where I found a friend of
mine. He had paid a sum of money in exchange for my release. I left the
police station with him.

     My second arrest was on 20 September. I was held for six hours. I was
arrested in al-Jahra', again as I was driving a car. They interrogated me
again, asking the same questions as before. I was beaten and insulted. I was
released in exchange for a sum of money. Two others detained with me were
released in the same way.

TESTIMONY A7

     A 23-year-old student arrested around 22 September after returning to
Kuwait to assist his family in fleeing the country. He was detained in several
detention centres in Kuwait City and later in Basra. He was subjected to
beatings, whipping, exposure to cold air and to the sun for prolonged periods,
and electric shocks.

     "I was not in Kuwait when the invasion occurred, but went there in order
to get my family out. I was arrested in mid-September, in al-Salmeh district.
First I was taken to 'Ali al-Salem [military] base, close to the border with
Saudi Arabia, where I was left on my own for about three hours. No one talked
to me. Then I was taken to al-Liwa' al-Sades [military base on the al-Jahra'
road]. I was put in a room where the air-conditioning was switched on. They
left me there overnight without a blanket, and I was shivering from the cold.
I was not given any food. The following day I was interrogated. They asked me
to tell them where the American forces were stationed, where the resistance in
Kuwait was based, etc. I was being interrogated on my own, but after it was
over they took me with two other detainees to the Iraqi Embassy in Kuwait
City. We were taken in an open car, accompanied by two soldiers. At the
embassy we were left for three hours in the sun, without food or water. Then
an officer arrived and took us back to al-Liwa' al-Sades. From there we were
taken to Basra in a lorry loaded with goods stolen from Kuwait. These were
mainly refrigerators and office equipment.

     In Basra we were taken to the offices of the Iraqi Istikhbarat
[Intelligence]. As soon as we entered we were blindfolded. The Iraqis started
whipping and beating the three of us. They took us down some stairs into a
basement. Although I was blindfolded, I managed by looking downwards to see
scores of detainees who were also blindfolded and handcuffed. The three of us
who arrived together were put in a cell measuring 3 x 4 metres, together with
about 25 other detainees. These detainees, from what I could gather, were all
Iraqi civilians. One of them, aged 18, had been tortured with electricity.
Another one had had his skin pierced with pins. We could hear cries and
screams all the time. The whole basement was stifling - there was no
ventilation whatsoever. We were constantly beaten. The food we were given was
foul, and the water was warm and salty. We were allowed to go to the toilet
once a day only.

     I remained in that cell for about one week. Then I was summoned for
interrogation. I was taken upstairs, blindfolded and handcuffed. One person
interrogated me, and another person whipped me. The questions were mainly
related to the specific locations of American forces in Saudi Arabia and the
centres of resistance in Kuwait. The interrogation lasted about five minutes.
Then I was taken to another room, still blindfolded and handcuffed. I was
subjected to electric shocks on my right ear and chest.

     After that I was transferred by bus to an ordinary prison. The drive
took about 15 minutes. I was told I had to pay the bus fare, which I did with
the little money I had on me. I was held in a large hall, where there were
hundreds of detainees. I remained in the prison for seven or eight days, and
then 32 of the detainees were summoned for trial. I was one of them. We were
taken to another building which had a sign on the outside saying 'Basra
Court'. We sat in a waiting room, and then each of us was brought before a
judge individually. I didn't know whether he was really a judge, but the sign
on the door of his office said 'The Judge'. He wore civilian clothes. There
was also an officer in the room, taking notes. I was before the judge for
three minutes altogether. He asked me for my name and why I had returned to
Kuwait. The charge against me was entering the country illegally (when I was
first arrested I was accused of espionage). Then the judge asked me to sign a
statement, the contents of which I was given no opportunity to read. He warned
me that if I was caught again I would be executed. I was taken back to the
waiting room while the other detainees went through the same process. When it
was over, we were taken back to the prison, where they gave us back our
identity documents and released us. A few of us took a taxi as far as Safwan,
and from there entered Kuwait."

TESTIMONY A8

     A 31-year-old man arrested on 14 September at his home during a
diwaniyya. He was detained for three weeks at al-Farwaniyya and al-Jahra'
police stations as well as a private home in Kuwait City, and later in Basra.
He was subjected to beatings, electric shocks, mock execution, was forced to
watch his relatives being tortured and was himself tortured in front of them.

     "At 2:30 am 45 soldiers broke into my house. As well as my own family,
my father and brothers and my in-laws were there. We were twelve in all:
eight Kuwaitis, three Indians and one Yemeni [names withheld by Amnesty
International]. The soldiers separated the men from the women and made the
men lie on the floor face down with their hands above their head. The house
was searched and a picture of the Amir was found, as well as the Kuwaiti
flag. We were told this was a capital offence. They took the men in a bus and
confiscated the cars. They also took our jewellery, watches and money.

     They took us to al-Farwaniyya police station and put us into two cells.
At 9 pm the next evening the interrogation began. We were blindfolded and
handcuffed behind the back before interrogation. We were accused of being in
the resistance. There was usually one interrogator and two guards present.
The interrogator said he was not convinced by our answer which was denial of
involvement. After 15 minutes, the beatings began. They tied a wire to my two
middle fingers and an electric current switched on for 4 to 5 seconds. The
same questions were again repeated. My father was then called in. I was forced
to watch him being kicked and beaten by a lieutenant called Hani. Then they
called in my son. I was beaten in front of him in order to get him to confess.
This went on from 9 o'clock until 1:30 in the morning.

     I was returned to my cell. I was unable to lie on my back for two days.
Interrogation continued twice daily at 11am and 2:30 am. They used a nylon
hose to beat us because it does not leave any permanent marks. I was prodded
with an aluminium stick which had an electrified end. On the third day they
threatened to bring in my wife and beat her in front of me. My brother-in-law
was subjected to falaqa.

     In all there were about fifty people in the two cells at al-Farwaniyya.
We had very little food, and we were allowed to go to the toilet only twice a
day. After seven days they subjected me to mock execution. The interrogator
put a gun to my head and pulled the trigger. He then put it into my mouth and
pulled the trigger again. I was then forced to sign papers based on my
interrogation. On Monday at 4 pm we were taken in three cars to al-Jahra'
police station. We were put in one cell - eight of us plus four others (the
three Indians and the Yemeni had been released). We were told not to speak to
each other.

     Interrogation began at 9 pm. There were no beatings, just questions about
previous statements. Next day I was called in at 11 am, blindfolded. The
blindfolds were removed - I could see cane sticks and electric wires. I was
told to confess, and when I refused I was beaten with the sticks. After two
days the rest of the family was released. Next day I signed various papers and
was taken in a bus with seven others to a house in al-Jahra' district. It was
about 6 pm. We were taken down to the basement. This house seemed to be a
security centre. The guards wore civilian clothes, not military. There were
about 15 prisoners - four of them Palestinians. The guards beat us they
passed by. After five hours they moved us into cells. There were three cells
on the ground floor holding 85 prisoners - 35 in one and 25 in each of the
two others.

     Food was rare. We were allowed to go to the toilets twice daily. Beatings
were continuous. Sick people were seen by a doctor who came every two or three
days to give tranquilisers. We were interrogated twice daily in a separate
room. The guards had electrified sticks and used them to wake up the prisoners
throughout the night, according to their mood. We were usually interrogated by
seven people, each session lasting about half an hour, followed by a one hour
torture session. They beat us with hoses and applied electric shocks with
their sticks.

     At the end of the week I was taken with eight other detainees [names
withheld by Amnesty International] in a bus to Basra. First we were taken to
Sijn al-Amn al-Siyassi (State Security Prison). There were many Iraqis held
there, mostly members of al-Da'wa al-Islamiyya. On the first day I was held
in solitary confinement. They tortured me by pulling out a toenail from my
right foot, extinguishing cigarettes on my hand, and applying electricity to
my body using wires as well as an electric prod. The next day I was put in a
cell with 14 other detainees. One died of a heart attack, he was given no
medical help. I was interrogated once daily. After eight days I was forced to
sign various papers, the contents of which I had not seen, and taken back to
al-Jahra' on my own. I stayed there for six hours, and then I was handed over
to my father. I had lost over 20 kilos in weight."

     [His wife told Amnesty International of how soldiers came to their house
the day after his arrest and beat her up along with their two daughters, in
order to force them to confess that he was involved in opposition activities.
They put a gun to the head of one of her daughters and threatened to shoot
her. Then they slapped her and threw her to the ground.]