Third Uzbekistan 'torture death'

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A third person has died after being tortured in prison, a human rights organisation in Uzbekistan has said.

Two other such deaths have been reported in the country in the past month, all linked to the same prison in the eastern town of Andijan.

There was no reaction from the Uzbek authorities, but they regularly deny any allegation of torture.

Human rights groups say torture is routinely used against political and religious prisoners in Uzbekistan.

The organisation reporting the latest death, the Initiative Group of Independent Human Rights Defenders of Uzbekistan, told the BBC Uzbek service the body of the prisoner was returned to the family in a coffin, which they were told not to open.

About two weeks ago the body of another prisoner, Takhir Nurmukhamedov, was returned to his family from Andijan prison, with relatives now saying his buttocks had been burnt and his skull broken.

Last month, the UN Committee Against Torture expressed extreme concern over allegations of widespread torture in Uzbekistan.

The committee was responding to a report from Uzbekistan on its compliance with the UN convention prohibiting torture.