No One Can Heal the Memories of the 48 Days I Spent in that Prison

Tweet "I am sure they knew I was not an insurgent, but the real reason for arresting me was that I'm from a tribe which is against local militias, and I was one of the dozens of men arrested as revenge on our tribe.

"When I reached the prison I knew that if someone didn't help me, I would die because I would not be able to survive being tortured.

"The day I arrived at the prison they [police officers] took me away for interrogation. I have never felt as humiliated in my life as I did on that day.

"The police officers stripped me naked and started to shout at me; they hit me on the face and kicked me in the stomach with their boots. Later they started to put out their cigarettes on my body, especially on my arms and legs.

"They then forgot all about me for two days, leaving me in a cell with 15 other prisoners. We had to take turns to sleep on the bare floor because the space was too small for everybody to lie down at the same time.

"After two days, I was again called for interrogation. That was the most terrible day of all my 48 days in prison. In addition to beating me, two officers tried to rape me, and when I resisted they started to use an electrical device until I lost consciousness.

"Everyday they told me that if I didn't identify the people who were against the militia groups in Basra, they were going to hang me or shoot me with all the bullets they had.

"I was so scared, especially as two other men who'd also been threatened with death, failed to return to the cell after interrogation. That time I was sure that my last day in this world was near.