The victims were tortured by agents from the Information Branch and the Judicial Police of the Internal Security forces and several military intelligence officers. They were tortured in various locations including: police stations and detention centers. Two locations are of particular concern: firstly, the headquarters of the Ministry of Defence in Al-Yarzeh, east of Beirut and secondly, the headquarters of the Information Branch of the Internal Security forces in Beirut.

During the torture sessions, the victims were forced to sign confession, which were later used against them in court.

Alkarama has requested that the Special Rapporture on Torture urge the Lebanese authorities to fully implement its obligations under the Convention against Torture. Lebanon is currently nine and half years late in submitting its initial report to the Committee against Torture.

Alkarama calls upon the Lebanese authorities to establish a national "preventive anti-torture mechanism", which has been delayed for nearly a year, in contradiction to the stipulations of the Optional Protocol of the Convention against Torture, ratified by Lebanon in December 2008.

Below are the details of three of the seven cases submitted to the Special Rapportuer on Torture:

1. Mohamed Othman Al-Zayat

Mohamed Othman Al-Zayat, 21, from Tripoli in northern Lebanon, was arrested and beaten on 24 June 2010 at an internet cafe in the "Albroonsh" area, near the port of Tripoli, by plain-clothed Information Branch officers belonging to the Internal Security forces.

Mohamed Al-Zayat then taken to the Tripoli's Palace of Justice, but was quickly rushed to the headquarters of the Information Branch in Beirut, where he was kept for 48 days. During this 48-hour period, he was repeatedly tortured while having his head covered, in order to protect the identity of his torturers. His torturers forced him to stand in painful positions while they punched and kicked him all over his body. While in the interrogation room, he had hairs plucked and was electrocuted. Mr Zayat was forced to sign confessions that would eventually be used against him in court.

2. Abdul Karim Mustafa

Abdulkarim Mustafa, is a 26 year-old professor of communications at a technical institute. He lives in Benin, Akkar in north Lebanon. He was arrested on 21 October 2008 by plain-clothed military intelligence officers in Al-Qiba. He was torture during his detention, and never charged nor brought before a court.

Abdelkarim Mustafa was held by intelligence officer in Al-Qiba for four days before being transferred to the Ministry of Defense in Al-Yarzeh for a 10-day period. He was then taken to the Military Court in Beirut, although he never appeared before a judge, he would spend seven days there before being transferred to the barrack of Rihaniyya military police station. Following 20 days incarceration, on 24 November 2008, he was finally taken to Roumiya central prison in Beirut.

During the 41-day period before being transferred to the Roumiya prison in Beirut, Abdelkarim Mustafa was kept blindfolded and handcuffed. In the first few days of his detention, he was prevented from going to the toilet and not given anything to eat or drink. His torturers used a torture method known as the "faroukh" (the chicken), during which the torture victim is electrocuted on his private parts.

He would eventually sign confessions, although he was not allowed to read the document he was signing. The confessions were used against him in court, and in his trial he face charges of having links to terrorist cells responsible for the attacks the Lebanese army in Tripoli in August and September 2008.

At the request of his lawyer, Abdelkarim Mustafa was examined by a doctor and the medical report indicated that there were "clear signs of torture".

3. Mohammad Reza

Mohammad Reza Mohammad Timor is 23 year-old Lebanese student from Shataura in the Bekaa valley, eastern Lebanon. He was arrested on 1 January 2008, after receiving a summons from the criminal investigation bureau in Zahla. He was implicated in a criminal investigation regarding the death of a teller in the "Al-Masna" area, near the Lebanese-Syrian border.

After his arrest, he was held incommunicado for 30 days at the judicial investigation bureau in Zahla. He spent 19 days in solitary confinement before being transferred to the Roumiya central prison.

During the first 30 days of his detention, Mohammad Timor was repeatedly tortured - punched, kicked and even beaten with sharp objects. On several occasions he was stripped naked and tortured using methods such as the forcible removal of finger nails and being held on a crucifix for extended periods.

Mohammad Timor was tortured in order that he sign a confession that would be used against him in court. During a hearing on 20 October 2009, his lawyers raised allegations of torture before the Court - subsequently the judge ordered an investigation. However, more than a year later, no investigation has been instigated in order to prosecute those responsible for his torture.

Mohammad Timor is still detained in Roumiya prison, where he is forced to undergo intensive treatment as a result of torture. His medical reports have been sent to the UN, and clearly document the extent to which he was tortured.