AFP, WASHINGTON: The US Senate voted Tuesday to ban torture during interrogations, a measure aimed at ending brutal techniques that were used on terror suspects following the 9/11 attacks of 2001.
The measure passed overwhelmingly, 78 votes to 21, with all members of the Democratic caucus and 32 Republicans in support.
They included Republican co-sponsor John McCain, who was tortured in Vietnam, where he was a prisoner of war for more than five years after he was shot down over Hanoi in 1967.
"This amendment provi­des greater assurances that never again will the United States follow that dark path of sacrificing our values for our short-term security needs," said McCain, who has pushed for years to end the practice.