Rights groups accuse Turkish police of torturing earthquake looting suspects

TURKISH security forces have subjected suspects arrested on suspicion of looting in the aftermath of the devastating February earthquake to torture and other forms of ill treatment, rights groups said today.

In a joint report, Amnesty and Human Rights Watch (HRW) accused Turkish police and the armed forces of using the state of emergency declared by President Recep Tayyip Erdogan after the earthquake as a “licence to torture”.