Detainees in prisons run by the Afghanistan National Police and the country's intelligence service are routinely abused and subjected to what a new report from the United Nations refers to as "systematic torture." The report details repeated beatings, electric shocks, the use of stress positions and the threat of sexual assault. It is unknown whether American officials were aware of or complicit in the abuse.

Fotini Christia, assistant professor of political science and member of the security studies program at MIT, explains what these revelations mean to U.S.-Afghan relations. Georgette Gagnon, director of human rights for the United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan, responds to the report's findings.