Torture is distinguished from brutality by its systematic purpose of extraction

Evidence

It is essential to be clear about what one means by the word of which Massu was “not frightened”. In a conventional war, so-called “war crimes” generally fall into two distinct categories; those committed in hot blood—prisoners despatched out of hand on the battlefield, shot-down bomber crews lynched by enraged civilians after an air-raid; and those perpetrated in cold blood—the concentration camps. Similarly, in an unconventional war like Northern Ireland or Algeria, there are the brutalities, the roughing-up, the passage à tabac that may be inflicted immediately following the arrest of a suspected terrorist; and there is the prolonged and systematic application of physical or psychological pain expressly aimed at making a suspect “talk”, which constitutes torture as opposed to brutality. — Horne, Alistair, A Savage War of Peace- Algeria 1954-1962, 581 (#corroborates, via linked claim)

Categorization

• XREF: connects to: Truth serum torture destroys victims’ capacity to distinguish true from false; Horne distinguishes physical brutality after arrest from systematic torture aimed at extracting information — Horne, Alistair, A Savage War of Peace- Algeria 1954-1962, 581; Judicial torture was a quantified technique, not lawless rage — Michel Foucault, Discipline & Punish- The Birth of the…, 83 (+3 more)

Related

• Horne distinguishes physical brutality after arrest from systematic torture aimed at extracting information (similarity 0.94)
• Torture is counterproductive even for intelligence gathering (similarity 0.79)
• Torture’s ambiguous truth makes it a potent propaganda weapon for both sides (similarity 0.78)

Broader Connections

• Horne distinguishes physical brutality after arrest from systematic torture aimed at extracting information #corroborates (0.90) — Horne, Alistair, A Savage War of Peace- Algeria 1954-1962, 581