A Nepalese army officer based in Britain is said to have ordered the torture of two suspected rebels during Nepal's civil war, according to evidence heard by the Old Bailey.

Lt Col Kumar Lama stands accused of ordering the torture of Janak Raut and Karam Hussain, who were believed to be Maoist rebels, but refutes the charges.

The prosecution is being brought in the UK due to an obligation under the United Nations Convention Against Torture.

Prosecutor Bobbie Cheema QC said Mr Raut, who was a medic and not a rebel, was tortured on orders by the colonel.

"The colonel ordered the soldiers to bring an iron rod, a spade and sticks to beat him with. As he lay face down on the ground, handcuffed and blindfolded, soldiers hit him with sticks and kicked him.

"He was beaten with such force that the sticks kept breaking and had to be replaced with new ones," she said.

Lt Col Lama, who lives in East Sussex, was arrested in 2013 after the Metropolitan Police investigated information supplied by a third party in the UK relating to the allegations.

British detectives with specialist experience of war crimes arrested the officer under Section 134 of the Criminal Justice Act, a law that defines torture as a "universal jurisdiction" crime, meaning that suspects can face trial before a British court even if their alleged offences had nothing to do with the UK.

‘Victims don’t forget’ says UN in Nepal (28 April 2013)

Nepalese army officer charged in UK for torture (05 January 2013)

Nepal protests UK arrest of visiting army officer for torture (04 January 2013)

Nepalese man arrested by Met Police over torture (03 January 2013)