Iraqi government denounces Abu Ghraib abuse

U.S. officials cite concerns latest images will spark more anger
CNN
Feb. 16, 2006

BAGHDAD, Iraq (CNN) -- The Iraqi government Thursday condemned prisoner abuse at Abu Ghraib, following an Australian TV broadcast of newly released images, the aired timing of which a spokesman for the U.S.-led coalition in Iraq called "irresponsible and "unnecessarily provocative."

A spokesman for Iraqi Prime Minister Ibrahim al-Jaafari said the events portrayed in the images are a "serious thing that completely conflicts with the human rights charter, and their repetition should be prevented."

The statement by Iraq's Council of Ministers went on to say it welcomed the "firm denunciation by the U.S. State Department and American officials."

On Wednesday, the Australian television network SBS broadcast videos and photos of apparent torture and sexual humiliation not seen before publicly. One of the more graphic videos shows five men wearing hoods and masturbating for the camera, presumably under orders from their guards.

The SBS program "Dateline" said the images were from 2003, taken around the same time as other photos leaked to the news media the following year. Publication of the original set of pictures in April 2004 sparked widespread international condemnation of the United States.

Salon.com published still more graphic photographs Thursday, apparently from the same set. Salon said it was given the photos by "someone who spent time at Abu Ghraib as a uniformed member of the military" and is familiar with the Army's investigation into them.
Iraqi notes improvements

Iraq's acting human rights minister, Nermin Othman, admitted that conditions at Iraqi prisons remain bad but said they have improved since the Abu Ghraib pictures first came to light nearly two years ago.

Othman said that an investigative committee is making spot checks at four detention facilities and the Human Rights Ministry is working to improve conditions. She said the panel is barred from access to detainees at a high-value detention center.

She said the ministry wants to switch management of Abu Ghraib from Western to Iraqi control but added that not enough Iraqi personnel are trained to run such a prison.
Coverage in Mideast papers

Arabic-language newspapers devoted a great deal of coverage to the images Thursday. Al Hayat published four pictures and an article about the apparent abuse under the headline: "New Image of Abu Ghraib Scandal: Torture, Killing and Mutilation."

Al-Rai in Jordan said on its Web site that revelations of the new images coincided with rage across the Islamic world over the publication of caricatures of the Muslim Prophet Mohammed.

But a U.S. military officer told reporters Thursday that the release of the new images has not resulted in any "increased hostility" in Iraq.

"Those pictures were pictures of criminal acts that took place many years ago, rogue soldiers doing activity that wasn't supported by their chain of command," Maj. Gen. Rick Lynch said.

The pictures are reflections "of what happened before," not "of what's happening now," Lynch said.

Nevertheless, U.S. officials have said the pictures and video should not have been released, with Defense Department spokesman Bryan Whitman telling The Associated Press their airing "could only further inflame and possibly incite unnecessary violence in the world."

The newly broadcast images do not appear to show any new perpetrators.

More than 25 people have been held accountable for criminal acts and other misconduct associated with prisoner abuse at Abu Ghraib, according to the U.S. Defense Department's Web site.

Army Reserve Brig. Gen. Janis Karpinski, who was in charge of Abu Ghraib during the prison abuse scandal, was demoted to colonel. She also was formally relieved of command of the 800th Military Police Brigade.

Another officer, Col. Thomas Pappas, was reprimanded and fined.

The longest prison sentence -- 10 years -- was given to Army Cpl. Charles Graner. Staff Sgt. Ivan "Chip" Frederick, a U.S. Army reservist from Virginia, received an eight-year sentence.

Graner and his then-girlfriend, Pfc. Lynndie England -- who was sentenced to three years in prison -- were in many of the original photos. They show up again in some of the new images.

The uproar caused by the newly broadcast images coincides with a U.N. report condemning U.S. treatment of terror suspects at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. The United Nations has called on the U.S. government to release all suspected terrorists being held there or try them.












All original InformationLiberation articles CC 4.0



About - Privacy Policy