1600
Abuse Pictures Shown In Secret
By Associated
Press
15 May, 2004
QcTimes.com
The abuse of Iraqi prisoners by U.S. troops
went beyond the photos seen by most Americans, shaken lawmakers said
after viewing fresh pictures and video that they said depicted forced
sex, brutality and dogs snarling at cowed prisoners.
.
Some members of Congress said they feared that making the images public
would inflame international outrage and endanger Americans still in
Iraq. The private screening of more than 1,600 photos in a top-secret
room of the U.S. Capitol came one day after Islamic militants announced
they had beheaded an American in Iraq to avenge abuse at the Abu Ghraib
prison.
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I dont know how the hell these people got into our army,
said U.S. Sen. Ben Nighthorse Campbell, R-Colo., after viewing what
he called a fraction of the images.
I saw cruel, sadistic torture, said U.S. Rep. Jane Harman,
D-Calif., who said some of the images were of male prisoners masturbating.
She said she saw a man hitting himself against a wall as though to knock
himself unconscious.
.
Others said they saw images of corpses, military dogs snarling at cowering
prisoners, women commanded to expose their breasts and sex acts, including
forced homosexual sex.
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There were people who were forced to have sex with each other,
said U.S. Rep. Gary Ackerman, D-N.Y.
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U.S. Rep. Trent Franks, R-Ariz., said, There were some pictures
where it looked like a prisoner was sodomizing himself with an
object. He said blood was visible in the photograph.
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Not everyone reacted the same way to the additional photos.
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House Majority Leader Tom DeLay, R-Texas, said he thought some
people are overreacting.
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The people who are against the war are using this to their political
ends, he said.
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Many of the photos appeared to include the same small group of soldiers
who were in pictures that had already been made public. And pictures
of abuse were mixed in with travelogue-type photos.
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Some questionable photos appeared to have nothing to do with prisoners,
including several that lawmakers believed were of sex between male and
female U.S. troops.
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The pictures on three discs were shown to lawmakers in the form of a
slide show. Many said the images were difficult to decipher.
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The private screening marked the latest turn in a scandal that has prompted
President Bush to apologize to the victims and Democrats to demand the
dismissal of Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld.
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Shortly before the viewing began, Rumsfeld defended military interrogation
techniques in Iraq, rejecting contentions that they violate international
rules and may endanger Americans taken prisoner.
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Rumsfeld told a Senate committee that Pentagon lawyers had approved
methods such as sleep deprivation and dietary changes as well as rules
permitting prisoners to be made to assume stressful positions.
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Gen. Richard Myers, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, also noted
that the rules require prisoners to be treated humanely at all times.
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U.S. Sen. Richard Durbin, D-Ill. said some of the approved techniques
go far beyond the Geneva Convention, a reference to international
rules governing the treatment of prisoners of war.
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The Defense Department is conducting multiple investigations into prisoner
abuse.
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Lawmakers were given three hours to see the photos and videos in top-secret
rooms at the Capitol. The photos remained in the custody of the Pentagon
as the administration tried to decide whether to release them to the
public.
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In the past two weeks a handful of photos have been made public along
with an Army report that found numerous sadistic, blatant and
wanton criminal abuses at the U.S.-run Abu Ghraib prison complex
near Baghdad.
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In Wednesdays viewing, briefers from the Pentagons Criminal
Investigation Division conducted the sessions sought by the Senate Armed
Services Committee, which has had two hearings into the abuses that
have caused an international firestorm.
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Committee Chairman John Warner urged before the photos were shown Wednesday
that lawmakers use caution in describing them publicly.
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I think weve got to be extremely cautious ... not incite
in any way further anger against our forces or others working in the
cause of freedom, the Virginia Republican said on the Senate floor.
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He said he didnt think they should be released to the public until
trials of the troops begin to protect the legal process and avoid inspiring
the enemy to inflict further damage.
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Myers said the military has taken steps to correct the problems, including
replacing the military police unit that took some of the photos.
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This was a unit that had issues with just adhering to the Armys
standards, Myers said. They didnt have standardized
uniforms. They were allowed to carry guns in their civilian clothes
when they were off duty. They had things written on their cap. They
didnt particularly want to salute.