“Reports of widespread torture and other abuse of detainees in detention facilities run by Iraq’s defence and interior ministries and police continue to emerge,” it said, including the sexual abuse of juveniles.

“Human rights conditions in Iraq remain extremely poor,” the watchdog said in its 2008 annual review of human rights in the country, nearly six years after the US-led coalition invaded Iraq and toppled president Saddam Hussein—for years a target of human rights criticism.

The rights body said the Iraqi government, characterised by its narrow base of support along sectarian lines, is struggling to handle more than 24,000 detainees, many who have spent years in custody without charge, and others being tortured.

Meanwhile security gains made in the violence-torn country in 2008 has not helped alleviate Iraq’s refugee crisis.

“Security gains in 2008 did little to ease Iraq’s crisis of displacement, with about 2.8 million Iraqis displaced within the country and another two million abroad, mainly in Syria and Jordan,”  the report said.

The report added that while attacks on Iraqis in the nation of 29 million had fallen many were still threatened or directly targeted by either Sunni Arab or Shiite militias.

“Civilians remained the targets of attacks by Sunni and Shiite armed groups across the country, though the number of such attacks fell after the US and Iraqi security offensive in 2007,” the report, adding that women were especially vulnerable.

“Violence against women and girls in Iraq continues to be a serious problem, with members of insurgent and militias, soldiers, and police among the perpetrators,” it said. Prosecutions were rare, it added.

“Insurgent groups in Basra and Baghdad have specifically targeted women who are politicians, civil servants, journalists and women’s rights activists.

“They have also attacked women on the street for what they consider “immoral’ or “un-Islamic’ behaviour, including not wearing a headscarf.”

The report added that honour killings remained prevalent in Iraq, with dozens of cases reported last year but few leading to convictions.

“Lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender people are also vulnerable to attack from state and non-state actors,” it said.

Iraq’s legal system too remained marred by failure to disclose important evidence, with the government often undermining the independence and impartiality of the court, the rights group said.