Since March, Syrian and Russian forces have been targeting hospitals as a strategy of war. Now Amnesty International has reported that nearly 18,000 civilians have died in Syrian state jails, with an estimated 300 people dying in custody every month. The report, based on interviews with 65 ‘torture survivors’, details systematic use of rape and beatings by prison guards. They described so-called welcome parties - ritual beatings using metal bars and electric cables. The Syrian government has repeatedly denied such allegations. The report estimates that 10 people die in custody every day, that’s more than 300 a month. According to the report, new detainees are subjected to ‘security checks’ that often involve sexual assaults on women by male guards. ‘They treated us like animals. They wanted people to be as inhuman as possible,’ said Samer, a lawyer from Hama who was among those interviewed.