Human rights groups condemn torture in Lebanese prisons

By KAREEM CHEHAYEB
Associated Press

BEIRUT (AP) — International human rights groups have condemned acts of torture in Lebanese prisons following the death of a Syrian refugee being questioned by security agents. Amnesty International on Tuesday called for Lebanon to transfer the investigation from a military to a civil court. The country’s State Security agency said that the 30 year-old Syrian confessed to being part of the militant Islamic State group during his interrogation, though his lawyer denied the accusation. Human Rights Watch Middle East and North Africa Director Lama Fakih told The Associated Press, “Lebanon suffers from a legacy of impunity for torture,” and urged the crisis-hit country to fully implement a 2017 anti-torture law.