British illegal imprisonment in Afghanistan

This video says about itself:

8 November 2013

Investigative reporter Matthieu Aikins has uncovered a video from Afghanistan showing Afghan National Army members repeatedly whipping a prisoner as US forces look on. He obtained the video whilst working on an investigation into alleged US war crimes for Rolling Stone magazine. US forces have frequently been accused of turning a blind eye to their Afghan colleagues torturing their prisoners during interrogation.

Here are links to the Matthieu Aikins reports for Rolling Stone:

The A-team killings.

Watch Highly Disturbing Footage of Detainee Abuses in Afghanistan. As Afghan soldiers abuse a prisoner, American Special Forces stand idly by: here.

Democracy Now Interview with Aikins: here.

UN report on Afghan torture: here.

Vice documentary – “This is What Winning Looks Like”: here.

By Paddy McGuffin in Britain:

Britain’s Afghan detention policy ‘unlawful’

Saturday 3rd May 2014

BRITAIN’S detention policy in Afghanistan is unlawful, the High Court in London ruled yesterday in a landmark judgement.

Since November 2009 British policy has involved internment to enable interrogation weeks or months beyond the permitted 96 hours under the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) guidelines.

Mr Justice Leggatt found that detention or internment beyond the 96 hours “went beyond the legal powers available to the UK.”

The ruling came in a claim for damages brought by Leigh Day & Co solicitors on behalf of Afghan national Serdar Mohammed in conjunction with a judicial review case brought by Public Interest Lawyers (PIL) for fellow Afghans Mohammed Qasim, Mohammed Nazim, and Abdullah.

Mr Mohammed was detained by British troops in 2010 and held by them without charge or access to a lawyer for 110 days before being handed over to the Afghan security services, whom he alleges brutally tortured him.

Mr Justice Leggatt found that Mr Mohammed’s detention was in “stark violation” of his rights and that it would have been apparent to the Ministry of Defence that its forces were acting without legal authority.

A Leigh Day spokesperson said: “When we send our troops abroad it is the Ministry of Defence’s job to ensure that the mechanisms are put in place to ensure that they operate within the rule of law.

“As the court has made clear, the MoD fully understood the parameters of the law regarding detention and yet they decided to operate flagrantly outside those rules.”

PIL’s participation at the hearing was by direction of the Court, in recognition of the significance of the judgment for its claimants who also suffered such detention.

PIL solicitor Phil Shiner said: “This is a judgment of profound importance with far-reaching implications for future UK operations abroad where UK personnel are on the ground.

“It tells the MoD again that no matter how they try to avoid accountability for the UK’s actions abroad, international human rights law will apply and, thus, UK personnel must act accordingly.”

The MoD said it would appeal the ruling.