Freed Iranian diplomat says he was tortured by CIA

Iranian diplomat Jalal Sharafi (L) with Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki on the day of his release. The U.S. denies any involvement in his capture, imprisonment or interrogation.

TEHRAN (AFP) - An Iranian diplomat freed after being kidnapped in Iraq said he had been "tortured" by his captors, among them US intelligence officials, the state news agency IRNA reported Saturday.

Jalal Sharafi, who was abducted in Baghdad in February, said he was "subjected to different forms of torture day and night.

"I was kidnapped on a Baghdad street while shopping by officials who had Iraqi defence ministry ID cards and were riding in American forces vehicles," he told the agency...

"The kidnappers took me to a base near Baghdad airport and I was questioned by Arabic-speaking and English-speaking interrogators," he said.

"The CIA officials' questions focused mainly on Iran's presence and influence in Iraq. When faced with my responses on Iran's official ties with the Iraqi government they increased the torture," he said.

Read the rest at Yahoo News

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