Abu Ghraib Prison: An official report

[hardheadjarhead]

One of the official reports of the abuses at Abu-Ghraib prison. It was worse than I thought...


http://globalsecurity.org/intell/library/reports/2004/intell-abu-ghraib_ar15-6.pdf


By the way, for those interested, the information comes off of "Global Security's" web site. Military buffs will like the information posted there.



Regards,


Steve

 

[michaeledward]

Another sad fact to report today.


During major combat operations of the Iraqi invasion 139 US service members died. (March 20, 2003 through May 1, 2003 - 43 days)

Since the handover of sovereignty on June 28th 2004, 139 US service members died. (June 29, 2004 through September 6, 2004 - 70 days)

With the 715 US sevice members who died in the 424 days between these two time periods, a total of 993 United States servicemen and women have died in Iraq.

 

[bignick]

this is another example of the lowest common denomitator in human makeup....put most people in a bad situation where they have power and you're gonna see abuses

 

[michaeledward]

Abuse in Iraq was known to Military Leaders in December 2003. One month before the first photograph from Abu Ghraib was submitted to authorities.

The 'Herrington Report', recently leaked, describes known abuse events taking place to authorities.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/6623190/

By Josh White

Updated: 10:45 p.m. ET Nov. 30, 2004

A confidential report to Army generals in Iraq in December 2003 warned that members of an elite military and CIA task force were abusing detainees, a finding delivered more than a month before Army investigators received the photographs from Abu Ghraib prison that touched off investigations into prisoner mistreatment.
. . .
The investigation, by retired Col. Stuart A. Herrington, also found that members of Task Force 121 -- a joint Special Operations and CIA mission searching for weapons of mass destruction and high-value targets including Saddam Hussein -- had been abusing detainees throughout Iraq and had been using a secret interrogation facility to hide their activities.
. . .
He added that some detainees were arrested because targets were not at home when homes were raided. A family member was instead captured and then released when the target turned himself in -- a practice that, Herrington wrote, "has a 'hostage' feel to it."
. . .
"Between the losers and dead end elements from the former regime and foreign fighters, there are enough people in Iraq who already don't like us," Herrington wrote. "Adding to these numbers by conducting sweep operations . . . is counterproductive to the Coalition's efforts to win the cooperation of the Iraqi citizenry. Similarly, mistreatment of captives as has been reported to me and our team is unacceptable, and bound to be known by the population."

 

[michaeledward]

Fernando Botero is a columbian artist, who currently has a show in New York's Marlborough Gallery of drawings and paintings of his understanding of the Abu Ghraib abuses, as reported in Seymour Hersh's articles.

I heard of this exhibition on NPR this morning.

It may be worth the trip to the Apple.

http://www.marlboroughgallery.com/artists/botero/artwork.html