| suva chintak |
Posted
on 30-Apr-04 03:04 PM
And they go around the world to lecturing about not abusing prisioners/civilians!
This from the BBC:
UK troops in Iraqi torture probe
The Ministry of Defence has launched an investigation into allegations that British soldiers have been pictured torturing an Iraqi prisoner.
The photographs, obtained by the Daily Mirror newspaper, show a suspected thief being beaten and urinated on.
The UK's most senior soldier, General Sir Mike Jackson, said if guilty, the men were not fit to wear the uniform.
Earlier, the UK Government said it was "appalled" by pictures of Iraqi prisoners being abused by US troops.
Tony Blair's official spokesman said the way naked prisoners were tormented by troops directly contravened all the US-led coalition's policy.
He stressed the abuse by a few soldiers at the Abu Ghraib jail was not representative of coalition troops.
One of the images of abuse of Iraqi prisoners by US soldiers shows a hooded and naked prisoner standing on a box with wires attached to his genitals.
As the graphic pictures were beamed across the world, US President George W Bush said he was disgusted and vowed that those responsible would be "taken care of".
If proven, not only is such appalling conduct clearly unlawful but also contravenes the British Army's high standards of conduct
Sir Michael Jackson
General Chief of Staff
"I shared a deep disgust that those prisoners were treated the way they were treated. I didn't like it one bit," he said.
The people who are alleged to have carried out the abuse "do not reflect the nature of men and women we sent overseas", Mr Bush added.
The Mirror says the latest pictures were handed over by British soldiers who claimed a rogue element in the British army was responsible for abusing prisoners and civilians.
Speaking on condition of anonymity, the soldiers told the paper no charges were brought against the unnamed captive.
They allege during his 8-hour ordeal he was threatened with execution, his jaw broken and his teeth smashed.
'Losing war'
After being beaten and urinated on, he was driven away and dumped from the back of a moving vehicle, the soldiers claimed.
They added they did not know whether he survived.
The reason for making the photos public was, they said, to show why the US-UK coalition was encountering such fierce resistance in Iraq.
Sir Michael said most UK soldiers were commendable
One told the paper: "We are not helping ourselves out there. We are never going to get them on our side. We are fighting a losing war."
In a press conference, Sir Michael Jackson, Chief of the General Staff, said: "If proven, not only is such appalling conduct clearly unlawful but also contravenes the British Army's high standards of conduct.
"The allegations are already under investigation.
"Again, if proven, the perpetrators are not fit to wear the Queen's uniform and they have besmirched the Army's good name and conduct."
But he said the Army should not be judged on the behaviour of a few soldiers who had let down the good work of tens of thousands of others.
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| suva chintak |
Posted
on 30-Apr-04 03:07 PM
More of the torture and degradation at the hands of the liberators:
This one from CNN:
Bush expresses 'deep disgust' at prison photos
Friday, April 30, 2004 Posted: 2:28 PM EDT (1828 GMT)
(CNN) -- In the face of international outrage, President Bush said Friday that he was disgusted by photographs that apparently show American soldiers abusing detainees at a prison outside Baghdad.
"I share a deep disgust that those prisoners were treated the way they were treated," Bush said. "Their treatment does not reflect the nature of the American people. That's not the way we do things in America."
The photographs, which first aired Wednesday on CBS' "60 Minutes II" in the United States, were shown Friday by Arab television networks.
CNN has not verified the authenticity of the images.
"I didn't like it one bit," Bush added during an appearance in the White House Rose Garden with visiting Canadian Prime Minister Paul Martin.
The U.S. military said six U.S. soldiers have been charged with abusing inmates at Abu Ghraib, which was infamous under Saddam Hussein's reign.
White House press secretary Scott McClellan described the acts at the prison as "despicable."
"We cannot tolerate it, and the military is taking strong action against those responsible," McClellan said.
He said the president had known about the images for a while but declined to offer further details.
When asked about a potential worldwide backlash over the pictures, McClellan said, "It does not represent what we stand for, and I think the military has made it very clear that they are going to pursue -- to the fullest extent of the law -- these individuals."
In Iraq, a military official of the U.S.-led coalition also said the photos disgusted him.
Brig. Gen. Mark Kimmitt, the coalition's deputy chief of operations, said that he was "appalled that fellow soldiers who wear the same uniforms as us would do this."
One of the images aired on "60 Minutes II" appears to show a hooded prisoner standing on a box with wires attached to his hands.
"... They crossed the line and violated every tenet we teach in the Army about dignity and respect," he said, adding that he was expressing his personal opinion and not speaking on the coalition's behalf.
CBS said it has dozens of pictures purportedly showing a wide range of abuse.
Some of the images published on one London-based newspaper's Web site show naked, hooded prisoners. In one, a male and a female soldier smile as they pose with prisoners.
One picture apparently shows an Iraqi prisoner standing on a box with his head covered and wires attached to his hands.
Kimmitt said he has met with representatives of Iraq's newspapers to discuss how to report the story. Iraq does not publish newspapers on Friday, the Muslim holy day.
But some Baghdad residents, who saw the images Friday, said the photographs angered them.
An investigation began in January after a soldier reported the alleged abuse to superiors, Kimmitt said this week.
In another of the images aired on "60 Minutes II," a female soldier appears to be making a gesture at a hooded, naked prisoner.
Kimmitt declined to disclose the charges or other details, but he said military authorities take any such reports seriously.
"We are committed to treating all persons under coalition custody with dignity, respect and humanity," he said.
"Coalition personnel are expected to act appropriately, humanely and in a manner consistent with the Geneva Conventions."
In February, senior military officials said 17 troops, including a battalion commander, a company commander and 12 military police assigned to guard prisoners, had been relieved of duty until an investigation could be completed.
Expressions of shock among U.S. allies
British Prime Minister Tony Blair's human rights envoy to Iraq said Friday she was shocked by the images, while the editor of a London-based Arabic newspaper predicted Muslims would be furious.
Ann Clwyd, Blair's envoy and a lawmaker from the ruling Labor Party, voiced her condemnation. "I think they are absolutely terrible. I am shocked," she told British radio.
However, Clwyd said there was no comparison with how prisoners were treated under Saddam. "A small number of cases, horrible though they are -- you cannot compare that with the tens of thousands of people Saddam Hussein was responsible for executing and torturing."
Australian Prime Minister John Howard said Friday he was "appalled" by the images but praised the U.S. military for investigating.
British military expert Colonel Bob Stewart said the pictures would inflame an already volatile situation in the Arab world.
Stewart, NATO's former commander in Bosnia, told ITN the images were "the best recruiting sergeant that al Qaeda and those people that want to fight against British soldiers, American soldiers and the rest of coalition could ever want."
Photos also were splashed across many of Britain's newspapers. "We are losing their hearts and minds" was the headline in the Daily Mail's main editorial comment.
The Daily Mirror added: "When it comes to winning hearts and minds the U.S. Army hasn't got a clue. Many of its actions seem calculated to make enemies of Iraqis and drive them into the arms of extremists. The photos of prisoners being tortured ... are the most unforgivable acts yet."
Abdel Bari Atwan, editor of Al-Quds Al-Arabi newspaper in London, agreed. "It is absolutely shocking. I think this is the end of the story, the straw that broke the camel's back, for America," he told the UK Press Association.
"People will be extremely angry. ... Sexual abuse is the worst thing in that part of the world. It is shocking to all Muslims. America has lost the battle completely. I believe there will be more attacks."
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