A/HRC/31/46 III. Protection from arbitrary detention and respect for fair trial rights 44. The treatment of conflict-related detainees, in particular those in the custody of the National Directorate of Security, remains a major human rights concern. 45. In February, UNAMA/OHCHR published its third public report on the treatment of conflict-related detainees, based on interviews with 790 detainees conducted during visits to 128 detention facilities between February 2013 and December 2014. 46. The report found that one third (35 per cent or 278 individuals) of the 790 detainees interviewed by UNAMA/OHCHR had experienced torture or ill-treatment in the custody of the National Directorate of Security, the Afghan National Police, the Afghan Local Police and the Afghan National Army. UNAMA/OHCHR documented 16 different methods of torture, including prolonged and severe beating with cables, pipes, hoses and wooden sticks (including on the soles of the feet), punching, kicking and hitting all over the body, twisting of genitals and threats of execution and/or sexual assault. UNAMA also documented cases of removal of fingernails and toenails and asphyxiation caused by stuffing clothes or plastic bags into detainees’ mouths. 47. While UNAMA/OHCHR recorded a 14 per cent decrease in the overall percentage of detainees interviewed who had experienced torture or ill-treatment compared with the previous observation period (October 2011-October 2012), it identified a continuing and pervasive lack of accountability for the use of torture, documenting only one prosecution of two officials of the National Directorate of Security officials for torture over the entire 23month observation period. 48. Key recommendations of the report included the establishment of an independent national preventive mechanism on torture, the closure of unofficial detention centres and the prompt, impartial and thorough investigation of all allegations of torture in order to ensure accountability. 49. The Government reacted positively to the report and issued a national plan on the elimination of torture, in which it committed to beginning the process of ratifying the Optional Protocol to the Convention against Torture or Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment and to establishing a national preventive mechanism on torture, as required by the Protocol. The national plan also included legislative, preventive, educational and capacity-building measures to promote accountability and ensure more effective implementation of Afghanistan’s obligations to eliminate torture under international and domestic law. 50. In June 2015, President Ghani committed to signing the Convention against Torture. That commitment was reiterated by the Government’s Chief Executive Officer, Abdullah Abdullah, in a speech to the General Assembly, on 28 September. At the end of November, the Ministry of Justice was working on the elaboration of a new anti-torture law, which is expected to contain extensive provisions of redress for victims of torture. 51. Notwithstanding the Government’s commitments, torture remains prevalent in detention facilities throughout the country, in particular those run by the National Directorate of Security. Since the release of its report, UNAMA/OHCHR continued to interview conflict-related detainees, including juveniles, in detention facilities in 25 provinces. It was revealed that detainees continued to experience torture or ill-treatment at the time of arrest and during interrogation or detention at levels comparable to the findings documented in the February 2015 report. The majority of the cases related to National Directorate of Security facilities, although UNAMA/OHCHR also documented cases of ill- 10