Cruel Britannia: A Secret History of Torture - Hardcover

Cobain, Ian

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 1846273331 ISBN 13: 9781846273339

Publisher: Portobello Books Ltd, 2012

Synopsis

The official line is clear: the UK does not 'participate in, solicit, encourage or condone' torture. And yet, the evidence is irrefutable: when it comes to dealing with potential threats to our national security, the gloves always come off. As the enquiries into the on-going abuse of terror suspects uncover an ever more sinister and unpalatable chain of complicity - going right to the top of government - it is time to re-examine the assumption that the British don't 'do' torture. Drawing on previously unseen official documents, and the accounts of witnesses, victims and experts, prize-winning investigative journalist Ian Cobain looks beyond the cover-ups and the attempts to dismiss brutality as the work of a few rogue interrogators, to reveal a secret and shocking record of torture. From WWII to the War on Terror, via Kenya and Northern Ireland, Cruel Britannia shows how the British have repeatedly and systematically resorted to torture, turning a blind eye where necessary, bending the law where they can, and issuing categorical denials all the while. What emerges is a picture of Britain that challenges our complacency on human rights and exposes the lie behind our reputation for fair play.

About this title

Review

In one of the most shocking and persuasive books of the year, Cobain details not just British complicity in torture, but the longstanding practice of the thing itself, and the lies British politicians have always told, and are still telling, to cover it up. --David Hare

I found Cruel Britannia utterly gripping. Ian Cobain's writing has poise and measure, allowing space for these horrific truths to seep in, under the skin. I will not forget what I have learnt from this book, and I will be telling others about it for years to come. --P J Harvey

I am not prone to gasp and nor would I describe myself as naive. But the scale of torture in the British security services, as revealed by Ian Cobain in this admirably researched book, took me aback... Absorbing and devastating - Observer

Cobain's account is a reminder of why the default assumption, for every journalist dealing with authority, must be: Why is this liar lying to me? ? For the reader, it is a reminder of why we need journalist. As this quietly reported history of torture shows, Cobain is a fine one - Sunday Times

From the London Cage a secret World War II interrogation centre through to the Cold War, the Troubles and the death of Baha Mousa in Iraq, what d been done under the aegis of the British state will shock anyone who cherishes civilised values - --Metro

A deeply disturbing book which implicates both the British Government and the Security Services. It is like rolling a hand grenade into the heart of the Establishment. --Lieutenant Colonel Nicholas Mercer

I am not prone to gasp and nor would I describe myself as naive. But the scale of torture in the British security services, as revealed by Ian Cobain in this admirably researched book, took me aback... Absorbing and devastating - Observer

Cobain's account is a reminder of why the default assumption, for every journalist dealing with authority, must be: Why is this liar lying to me? ? For the reader, it is a reminder of why we need journalist. As this quietly reported history of torture shows, Cobain is a fine one - Sunday Times

From the London Cage a secret World War II interrogation centre through to the Cold War, the Troubles and the death of Baha Mousa in Iraq, what d been done under the aegis of the British state will shock anyone who cherishes civilised values - --Metro

A deeply disturbing book which implicates both the British Government and the Security Services. It is like rolling a hand grenade into the heart of the Establishment. --Lieutenant Colonel Nicholas Mercer

About the Author

IAN COBAIN was born in Liverpool in 1960. He has been a journalist since the early 1980s and is currently an investigative reporter with the Guardian. His inquiries into the UK's involvement in torture since 9/11 have won a number of major awards, including the Martha Gellhorn Prize and the Paul Foot Award for investigative journalism. He has also won several Amnesty International media awards. Cobain lives in London with his wife and two children. This is his first book.

About this edition

• Publisher: Portobello Books Ltd
• Publication date: 2012
• ISBN 10: 1846273331
• ISBN 13: 9781846273339
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 368