UZBEKISTAN: Britain has dismissed its ambassador to Uzbekistan after he accused the Central Asian state of supplying the West with bogus security information obtained through torture.
Mr Craig Murray (45) said he was removed for speaking out about human rights violations in the authoritarian country that has become a key ally of the US in its war on terror.
He was withdrawn when a memo was leaked in which he said Uzbekistan was torturing prisoners and passing their bogus confessions to the West to win military aid, adding that Britain had sacrificed its moral standing by accepting the material.
The British Foreign Office said it had withdrawn Mr Murray from Tashkent for "operational reasons" and he would be relocated elsewhere.
In turn, Mr Murray said his removal represented the politicisation of Britain's supposedly neutral civil service.
"This sends a very strong signal that since the start of the war on terrorism, anyone who . . . questions what is happening . . . is going to seriously damage their employment prospects," he told BBC radio.
The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development cut back lending to the country in April, citing concerns over human rights and the banning of opposition political parties.
Human rights group Amnesty International backed Mr Murray, saying: "We would be extremely alarmed if his removal had anything to do with his criticism of human rights violations."