Washington DC - A federal jury on Tuesday ordered a US defense contractor to pay $42 million in damages to three Iraqi men who were tortured at Abu Ghraib prison, their lawyers said.

CACI Premier Technology Inc. was found liable at the conclusion of a long-running trial for its role in the torture of the three men at the notorious prison in 2003 and 2004, the Center for Constitutional Rights said.

Suhail Al Shimari, a middle school principal, Asa'ad Zuba'e, a fruit vendor, and Salah Al-Ejaili, a journalist, were each awarded $14 million in damages, the center said in a statement.

The three men filed suit against CACI, a private company based in Arlington, Virginia, in 2008.

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Abu Ghraib prison, west of Baghdad, became a potent negative symbol of the US occupation of Iraq after evidence emerged of detainee abuse by American soldiers at the facility.

Most of the abuse took place at the end of 2003, when CACI employees were working in the prison, according to the suit.

The company's civilian employees were accused of having encouraged US soldiers to abuse the prisoners to prepare them for interrogation.

Criminal charges were brought against 11 low-ranking guards, including former army reserve specialist Lynndie England, who was shown smiling in photographs while posing next to naked prisoners.

The case against CACI was brought under a section of the US Code called the Alien Tort Statute, which allows non-US citizens to file suit in US courts for human rights violations for incidents that took place outside the US.

CACI claimed that most of the alleged abuse was approved by the then-US defense secretary, Donald Rumsfeld, and incorporated into rules of engagement by military commanders at the prison.

"Today is a big day for me and for justice," plaintiff and journalist Salah Al-Ejaili said in a statement.

"This victory is a shining light for everyone who has been oppressed and a strong warning to any company or contractor practicing different forms of torture and abuse."

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"Those companies should no longer feel exempt from accountability moving forward."

Katherine Gallagher, an attorney at the Center for Constitutional Rights, welcomed the jury's verdict, saying it "makes clear CACI's role in this shameful part of our history."

"Private military and security contractors are put on notice that they can and will be held accountable when they breach the most fundamental international law protections – like the prohibition against torture," Gallagher said.

"For 20 years, CACI has refused to take responsibility for its role in torture at Abu Ghraib."