China accused in interrogations

WASHINGTON – The Amnesty International human rights group alleged Tuesday that a Chinese government delegation visited the Guantanamo Bay prison in 2002 and participated in interrogations in which Chinese detainees were subjected to sleep deprivation, forced sitting for many hours and intimidation.

Alistair Hodgett, a spokesman for the group, said it based the claim on multiple sources of information but declined to identify them. In a statement released Tuesday, Amnesty said it deemed “credible” the sources’ allegation that the Chinese delegation took part in the mistreatment of some of the 22 Chinese-origin ethnic Uighur detainees at the military prison in Cuba.

U.S. military officials have denied allegations of physical mistreatment leveled by some released detainees from Britain but say some “credible” allegations “are being investigated.” In the past, U.S. officials have confirmed that foreign intelligence officers visited the Guantanamo Bay jail to help question their countrymen, but few allegations have emerged that any helped direct abusive interrogations.