January 18, 1978

The UK is found guilty of mistreating prisoners in Northern Ireland. Following ‘the Troubles,’ the European Court of Human Rights finds the United Kingdom guilty of mistreating prisoners in Northern Ireland, but does not find the UK guilty of torture. It was during this time that Amnesty International would expose the five techniques used in interrogation: hooding, wall-standing, subjection to noise, relative deprivation of food and water, and sleep deprivation. Guilty of these “inhuman and degrading” methods, the fact that the UK was not convicted on grounds of torture led to an ongoing debate to define torture in international law.