Former President Jimmy Carter Says He Knows U.S. Tortures Prisoners

Washington, D.C. (AHN) - Fanning the flames of controversy surrounding the Bush administration's alleged use of torture, former President Jimmy Carter weighed in on Wednesday saying that he "knows" that the U.S. tortures prisoners in violation of international law.

In a television interview, Carter accused President George Bush of creating his own definition of torture and also raised concerns that Republican presidential candidates were competing amongst themselves to target what he called a "war mongering element" in the country.

"I don't think it, I know it," Carter told CNN's Wolf Blitzer when asked pointedly if he believed that the Bush administration used torture.

"Our country for the first time in my life has abandoned the basic principle of human rights... We've said that the Geneva Conventions do not apply to those people in Abu Ghraib and Guantanamo, and we've said we can torture prisoners and deprive them of an accusation of a crime to which they are accused," he said.

Carter's assertion comes after the White House defended interrogation practices used against terror suspects following a New York Times report that a secret memo amounted to a government endorsement of more extreme tactics in interrogations. Amidst national outcry, President Bush denied the reports, saying "This government does not torture people."

Carter however rebuked the administration's justification of its practices saying that President Bush's statement was not "accurate' when set against international norms of torture and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

"But you can make your own definition of human rights and say we don't violate them, and you can make your own definition of torture and say we don't violate them," Carter said.

When asked about Carter's comments, a senior White House official maintained the government's position that it does not torture people, adding, "It's just sad to hear a former president talk like that."

The former President meantime also criticized GOP candidates, particularly Republican front runner Rudy Giuliani for supporting a U.S. led war on Iran.

"They all seem to be outdoing each other in who wants to go to war first with Iran, who wants to keep Guantanamo open longer and expand its capacity -- things of that kind," Carter said.

"They're competing with each other to appeal to the ultra-right-wing, war-mongering element in our country, which I think is the minority of our total population," he added.