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Punishment methods have been used by Syrian government for DECADES
Now ISIS are copying the same brutal techniques once used against them
They include 'the ghost' where victims are hung by their wrists for days
One man's arms dislodged from their sockets due to constant punishment
Another still twitches uncontrollably from torture he says IS have perfected

Published: 10:14 GMT, 13 December 2014 | Updated: 16:32 GMT, 13 December 2014

Islamic State militants are employing identical torture methods used by the Syrian government they have vowed to overthrow.

Prisons taken over by the Islamic extremists are now doling out the same brutal practices on their victims, which Assad's forces used to punish rebels like them for decades.

Victims of ISIS claim they are now using well-known punishments like 'the tyre', the 'flying carpet' and the 'German chair'.

Activists in Raqqa revealed how they were tortured using a method known as the 'shabeh', which roughly translates to 'ghost' in Arabic.

It involves tying the victims' arms behind their backs using handcuffs - which are then used to hoist the body into the air, putting extreme pressure on the shoulder sockets.

Hazm al-Hussein, who was tortured by an Islamic State leader once imprisoned by the regime, said: 'All you think about is the pain.

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Invasion: Islamic State have near-total control over the city of Raqqa (pictured), where those trying to relay images of their suffering to the outside world, are arrested and tortured

Enemy: It's thought Islamic State are copying the torture methods used by President Bashar al-Assad's (pictured) regime - who they've vowed to overthrow