Torture photos fuel scandal of secret Iraqi jail

Graphic photographs of injuries allegedly suffered by detainees in Iraqi custody surfaced today as the Government attempted to dismiss international criticism over a secret torture prison.

The images, released by the Sunni Committee of Muslim Scholars (SCMS), show men - alleged to be former police officers taken captive by Shia commandos - with bruises and welts covering their bodies. The skin on one man's arm is seared to the flesh.

The publication of the disturbing photographs follows the discovery on Sunday of 173 men and teenage boys in a secret prison beneath a government building in Baghdad. Some of the inmates were reportedly tortured, beaten and starved.

John Reid, the Defence Minister, described the abuse as "totally unacceptable", UN Secretary General Kofi Annan said he was "deeply concerned", and EU foreign policy chief Javier Solana said it would "not help" stabilize the country.