A U.S. court has ruled that two American men who allege they were tortured while being held by the U.S. military in Iraq can sue former Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld.



The two men -- Donald Vance and Nathan Ertell -- say they were detained by the U.S. military after reporting on the illegal activities of the privately owned security company they were working for.



The federal appeals court on August 8 upheld a lower court ruling which had dismissed requests by Rumsfeld and the U.S. government to have the case dismissed.



It said the two men had sufficiently argued that Rumsfeld had personally authorized the harsh interrogation techniques. But the court also said it remained to be seen whether he had actually done so.



It is the second time this month that U.S. judges have ruled that Rumsfeld can be sued by U.S. citizens who allege they were tortured in Iraq at the hands of the U.S. military.



compiled from agency reports