noun the deliberate, systematic, or wanton infliction of physical or mental suffering by one or more persons in an attempt to force another person to yield information or to make a confession or for any other reason.
— synonyms: torture
Examples
“In the aftermath of 9/11, we did some things that were wrong. We did a whole lot of things that were right, but, we tortured some folks. We did some things that were contrary to our values.”