The CIA has suspended the use of some harsh interrogation tactics approved by the White House to extract information from al Qaeda leaders and supporters, The Washington Post reported Sunday.

The report, quoting intelligence officials, said the "enhanced interrogation techniques," including feigned drowning and refusal of pain medication for injuries, have been put on hold pending a review by Justice Department and other administration lawyers.

The suspension reflects the CIA's concern about being accused of unsanctioned and illegal activities, as it was in the 1970s, the report cited current and former CIA officers aware of the recent decision as saying.

The decision applies to CIA detention facilities around the world, where the agency is interrogating al Qaeda leaders and their supporters, but not to military prisons at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, and elsewhere.

The report said CIA interrogations will continue, but without the suspended techniques, which also include feigning suffocation, "stress positions," light and noise bombardment, sleep deprivation, and making captives think they are being interrogated by another government.

The suspension is the latest fallout from the abuse scandal at Abu Ghraib prison in Iraq, and is related to the White House decision, announced on Tuesday, to review and rewrite sections of an August 1, 2002, Justice Department opinion on interrogations that said torture might be justified in some cases, the report said.

Source: Xinhua