By Whitney Webb

It has been reported that U.S. forces have interrogated prisoners in secret prisons in Yemen, many of which are run by the United Arab Emirates, a member of the Saudi-led coalition that is waging war in the country. Acts of torture are said to have taken place in the prisons.

Since the Saudi-led war in Yemen began in 2015, the United States has consistently asserted that it is not directly involved in the conflict, a convenient loophole that has allowed the U.S. to be indirectly involved without an official declaration of war by Congress or executive order. Indeed, since the war began, the U.S. has been providing targeting intelligence, logistical assistance and $215 billion worth of weapons to the Saudis.

Now, a new investigative report from The Associated Press has exposed yet another example of the U.S.’ indirect involvement in the war in Yemen – the key role that U.S. forces play in a network of secret prisons located throughout Saudi coalition-controlled territory where horrendous acts of torture are said to have taken place.

At least 18 prisons have been documented in southern Yemen, most of which are run by the United Arab Emirates – a member of the Saudi-led coalition in Yemen and one of the U.S.’ “key allies” in its Middle Eastern counter-terrorism operations.

Within these prisons, more than 2,000 Yemeni men are said to have disappeared – those who have survived have recounted nightmarish torture tactics within the black site facilities. In one detention complex in the city of Mukalla, inmates have been packed into shipping containers covered in human feces and blindfolded for weeks at a time. Others at the same facility reported being sexually assaulted, while others were sent to the “grill” – where detainees are tied to a spit and spun over a circle of fire.

On Wednesday, U.S. military officials confirmed U.S. involvement in the secret prison network, where an unknown number of U.S. forces interrogate detainees. They, however, denied that U.S. forces had taken part in any acts of torture, nor had they witnessed any such acts. Dana White, chief spokeswoman for the Department of Defense, stated in response to the AP investigation that “we always adhere to the highest standards of personal and professional conduct. We would not turn a blind eye, because we are obligated to report any violations of human rights.”

A history of torture