Fresh allegations of torture in Syria

The human rights organisation has released a report which uncovers 31 torture methods described by refugees who had fled Syria into neighbouring Jordan.

Their report suggested that at least 276 people had so far been killed in custody. It added that security forces had effectively been given impunity to torture despite it being outlawed by a new constitution.

Amnesty International’s Ann Harrison said: “The experience for many people caught up in the massive wave of arrests over the last year is now very similar to that of detainees under former President Hafez al-Assad – a nightmarish world of systemic torture.

“The testimonies we have heard give disturbing insights into a system of detention and interrogation which, a year after protests began, appears intended primarily to degrade, humiliate and terrify its victims into silence.”

Frustration

It is expected that Syria will be high on the agenda as Mr Cameron and President Obama discuss diplomatic and economic measures to increase pressure on President Bashar al-Assad’s regime.

Arriving in Washington, the prime minister told reporters: “We’re all frustrated by Syria. What’s happening in Homs is completely appalling.”

Mr Cameron said he wants to see a peaceful transition of power in Syria, adding: “I’m endlessly kicking the tyres and asking what else can be done. The shortest way of ending the violence is a transition where Assad goes, rather than a revolution from the bottom.

“Transition at the top rather than revolution at the bottom.”

The United Nations has suggested that more than 8,000 people have died since the uprising against President Assad’s regime began a year ago.

The release of Amnesty’s report coincides with a UN announcement that it would deploy human rights monitors to neighbouring states to collect evidence of atrocities in Syria.