Strappado is a form of torture in which a victim is suspended in the air by means of a rope attached to his hands which are tied behind his back. Weights may be added to the body. Other names for strappado include reverse hanging and Palestinian hanging. It is best known for its use in the Medieval Inquisition and has since been used by the governments of Turkey, Iran, and Nazi Germany, and reportedly by the U.S. military in Iraq. For other uses, see Torture (disambiguation). ... Pedro Berruguete. ... Nazi Germany, or the Third Reich, commonly refers to Germany in the years 1933–1945, when it was under the firm control of the totalitarian and fascist ideology of the Nazi Party, with the Führer Adolf Hitler as dictator. ... For other uses of terms redirecting here, see US (disambiguation), USA (disambiguation), and United States (disambiguation) Motto In God We Trust(since 1956) (From Many, One; Latin, traditional) Anthem The Star-Spangled Banner Capital Washington, D.C. Largest city New York City National language English (de facto)1 Demonym American...

Artwork depicting strappado. Note the hanging weights from the victim's ankles.

There are three variants of this torture. In the first one, the victim has his arms tied behind his back; a large rope is then tied to his wrists and passed over a beam or a hook on the roof. The torturer pulls on this rope until the victim is hanging from his arms. Since he has the hands tied behind the back, this will cause a very intense pain and possible dislocation of the arms. The full weight of the subject's body is then supported by the extended and internally-rotated shoulder sockets. While the technique shows no external injuries, it can cause long-term nerve, ligament, or tendon damage. The technique typically causes brachial plexus injury, leading to paralysis or loss of sensation in the arm. Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... Dislocation (joint dislocation) occurs when bones at a joint move from their normal position. ... The brachial plexus is an arrangement of nerve fibres (a plexus) running from the spine (vertebrae C5-T1), through the neck, the axilla (armpit region), and into the arm. ...

The second variation is similar to the first, but a series of drops is added. In addition to the damage caused by the suspension, the fall from the suspended height would cause major stress to the extended and vulnerable arms, leading to broken shoulders. It is believed that Niccolò Machiavelli, during his 1513 imprisonment after allegedly conspiring against the Medici family in Florence, was subjected to this form of strappado. Niccolò di Bernardo dei Machiavelli (May 3, 1469 – June 21, 1527) was an Italian political philosopher, musician, poet, and romantic comedic playwright. ... 1513 was a common year starting on Wednesday (see link for calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... For the board game, see Medici (board game). ... This article is about the city in Italy. ...

In the third variant, the victim's hands are tied to the front. The victim is also hung from the hands, but his ankles are tied and a heavy weight is attached to them. This will cause pain and possible damage not only to the arms, but also to the legs and hips. This variant was known as squassation.

The first variant described above (or similar) has been used by the Nazis at the Auschwitz concentration camp. The television documentary series Auschwitz: Inside the Nazi state by Laurence Rees (U.K. title: Auschwitz: The Nazis and the "Final Solution") contains an account of this "hanging torture" by surviving victim Jerzy Bielecki, who was subjected to it on suspicion of being a member of the Polish resistance: Auschwitz (Konzentrationslager Auschwitz) was the largest of the Nazi German concentration camps. ... Laurence Rees (born 1957) is Creative Director of History Programs for the BBC, a documentary filmmaker, and the author of five books on war and historical atrocities. ... “UK” redirects here. ... German supply train blown up by the Armia Krajowa during World War II. Polish resistance movement was a resistance movement in Poland, part of the anti-fascist resistance movement which fought against the occupation of Poland by Nazi Germany during World War II. Resistance to the Nazi German occupation began...

"He wanted to hang me on the hook. He said, 'Stand up on your toes. Finally he hooked me and then he kicked the stool away without any warning. I just felt Jesus Mary, oh my God, the terrible pain. My shoulders were breaking out from the joints. Both arms were breaking out from the joints. I'd been moaning and he just said, 'Shut up you dog. You deserve it. You have to suffer.'" [1]

The Nazis' use of this "hanging torture" has been taken as the basis of a statue on display at the Auschwitz visitors' center, which combines representations of a victim and of a part of the camp's barbed-wire fencing to form the shape of a swastika. (See photo here.) This article is about the symbol. ...

The technique has also been used by security forces of Turkey. In 1996, the European Court of Human Rights found Turkey guilty of torture (Aksoy v. Turkey, December 18, 1996) for its use of Palestinian hanging. Turkey has been admonished by Amnesty International and other international human rights groups concerning the use of the technique. European Court of Human Rights building in Strasbourg The European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR), often referred to informally as the Strasbourg Court, was created to systematise the hearing of human rights complaints against States Parties to the Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms, adopted by... Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Amnesty international Amnesty International (commonly known as Amnesty or AI) is an international non-governmental organization which defines its mission as to undertake research and action focused on preventing and ending grave abuses of the rights to physical and mental integrity, freedom of conscience...

In November 2003, Manadel al-Jamadi, a prisoner of the U.S., was killed during an interrogation session at Abu Ghraib prison in Iraq in which the method was used on him. His corpse, wrapped in cellophane and packed in ice, was seen in one of the photographs that broke the Abu Ghraib torture and prisoner abuse scandal. The U.S. military has ruled the death a homicide. Harman, al-Jamadi Graner, al-Jamadi Manadel al-Jamadi was an Iraqi who was tortured to death during interrogation at Abu Ghraib prison. ... Abu Ghraib cell block The Abu Ghraib prison (Arabic: سجن أبو غريب; also Abu Ghurayb) is in Abu Ghraib, an Iraqi city 32 km (20 mi) west of Baghdad. ... Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Abu Ghraib prisoner abuse Beginning in 2004, accounts of abuse, torture, rape[1] and homicide[2][3] of prisoners held in the Abu Ghraib prison in Iraq (also known as Baghdad Correctional Facility) came to public attention. ... Homicide (Latin homicidium, homo human being + caedere to cut, kill) refers to the act of killing another human being. ...

In Jane Meyer's piece in the November 14, 2005 issue of The New Yorker titled "A Deadly Interrogation: Can the C.I.A. legally kill a prisoner?" she wrote, For other uses, see New Yorker. ...

"The Associated Press quoted an expert who described the position in which Jamadi died as a form of torture known as “Palestinian hanging,” in which a prisoner whose hands are secured behind his back is suspended by his arms. (The technique has allegedly been used in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.)"

External links

• A Deadly Interrogation: Can the C.I.A. legally kill a prisoner?