Government lawyers are arguing in Britain’s Court of Appeal that the case of a Pakistani man who claims he suffered brutal torture at the hands of British and American troops should not be heard in a court of law.

The UK government previously said the case would compromise relations with Washington.

Yunus Rahmatullah claims he was tortured for a decade following his capture by UK Special Forces in Iraq, and his subsequent handover to American soldiers in Afghanistan.

Lawyers from legal charity Reprieve are representing the 32-year-old. The charity says he was kidnapped in Iraq by British forces, tortured and detained in a notorious Abu Ghraib detention facility, and subsequently taken to Afghanistan by American officials.Following a decade of captivity and abuse, Rahmatullah was eventually freed in 2014.

The Pakistani man’s defense team is appealing a former decision by Britain’s High Court that the UK government could use the “Crown Act of State” doctrine to throw out his case.

The government argues the legislation prevents UK courts from intercepting state acts abroad, even in cases where they are criminal.

If the High Court’s ruling remains in force, Reprieve says individuals’ capacity to hold the British government accountable for serious human rights abuses in foreign states will be curtailed.

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