CANBERRA (Reuters) - An Australian detainee facing U.S. terrorism charges, David Hicks, has complained of torture and abuse at the Guantanamo Bay jail in Cuba, Australian media reported on Friday.

Charges brought against Hicks on Thursday were the first brought against a suspected al Qaeda or Taliban member under a military commissions law passed by the U.S. Congress last year, the Pentagon said.

Hicks, in an application for British citizenship, said he had been shown a photo of a battered fellow inmate, and was told he would be sent to Egypt for similar treatment if he did not cooperate, the Sydney Morning Herald said.

Hicks, the sole Australian at Guantanamo Bay, said the anxiety caused by months of abuse forced him to “say anything” to military interrogators. The United States has denied any abuse at the prison.

The 31-year-old has been in U.S. custody at Guantanamo Bay for five years and ongoing delays in bringing him before a court have led to growing calls in Australia for his release.

Hicks, whose mother was born in Britain, is seeking British citizenship in the hope that London will then seek his release from Guantanamo Bay, as it did for nine British nationals.

The chief U.S. military prosecutor at Guantanamo Bay, Colonel Moe Davis, said he was unlikely to seek life imprisonment for Hicks, who should face a preliminary court hearing within a month.

Read more at Reuters

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