FIVE Britons jailed in Saudi are to sue, claiming they were tortured into confessing to a series of bombings.

The group - including James Cottle from Manchester - were granted clemency by the Saudi king and released nearly two weeks ago.

But the men have now claimed they were tortured - hung from the ceiling by chains on their wrists and hung upside-down by their ankles, as well as regularly beaten and subjected to sleep deprivation.

They said they only signed confessions to the charges after they were told their wives would be brought in and raped in front of them if they didn't.

Mr Cottle, James Lee, Peter Brandon, Glen Ballard, Raf Schyvens and one other were convicted of the bombings in 2000 and 2001 on the basis of the confessions.Two were sentenced to public beheading and others, including steelworker Mr Cottle, from Moston, were jailed for 12 years.

But Mr Cottle and five other men, have always maintained their innocence.

They spent two years in prison before Saudi ruler King Fahd over-ruled the courts' sentences and set them free. Their sentences were reduced to the time they had already spent in jail, but legally they have still been convicted of the charges.

It had been alleged that the group were involved in a turf war over the supply of alcohol - which is illegal in the `dry' state of Saudi Arabia - and were responsible for the car-bombing that killed fellow ex-pat Christopher Rodway, but they were not convicted of his murder.

Personal injuries

The men were seen on Saudi television "confessing'' to the bombings.

Now Manchester-based law firm Pannone & Partners has been appointed to act on behalf of five of the men to explore what legal claims they may have.

Richard Scorer, a partner at Pannone & Partners, said they will now look at what action to take, which could include claims under human rights laws against the Saudi government, brought in courts there or in Britain, for damages for false imprisonment, for the torture they say they suffered and the personal injuries resulting from it.

He said the Saudi government has released a statement saying they have evidence which shows that the men were guilty of the bombings, but Mr Scorer said this has not been seen by the defendants. He said no forensic examination was ever made of any of the bomb sites or of undetonated devices.

Mr Scorer said: "We can confirm we have been instructed by James Lee, Peter Brandon, James Cottle, Glen Ballard and Raf Schyvens to explore, on their behalf, what legal claims they may have.

"Our clients emphatically reject the recent statement by the adviser to Crown Prince Abdullah that the Saudi authorities have proof that these men were guilty of the bombings. No such evidence has been produced.

"Our clients were convicted solely on the evidence of `confessions' and these were extracted by torture. We are advising the men in relation to legal avenues they might pursue."