Fears raised that captives face torture

FEARS grew yesterday that US troops captured in Iraq could face torture and sexual abuse.

Officials are concerned that Saddam Hussein’s regime will repeat its brutal treatment of previous prisoners of war. They are especially worried about the wounded female soldier who was one of five terrified troops paraded on Iraqi TV Sunday.

“It’s bad when a man is captured, but if a woman is captured, she doesn’t have the same chance to defend herself that a man does,” Elaine Donnelly, president of the Military Readiness Centre, told the Washington Times.