Pentagon Prison Report Details Inmate Attacks on MPs

NewsMax.com ^ | 5/06/04 | Carl Limbacher and NewsMax.com Staff

[kattracks]

Largely forgotten in the hysterical media coverage of the Iraqi prison abuse scandal is this tidbit: the vast majority of the alleged abuses were committed against the most hardened terrorist suspects and known troublemakers, many of whom took part in prison uprisings that put the lives of U.S. military guards at risk.

Section 34 of the now notorious Taguba Report begins: "The following riots, escapes, and shootings have been documented and reported to this Investigation Team." Here's a few selected highlights:

* June 9, 2003 - Riot and shootings of five detainees at Camp Cropper. (115th MP Battalion) Several detainees allegedly rioted after a detainee was subdued by MPs of the 115th MP Battalion after striking a guard in compound B of Camp Cropper.

A 15-6 investigation by 1LT Magowan (115th MP Battalion, Platoon Leader) concluded that a detainee had acted up and hit an MP. After being subdued, one of the MPs took off his DCU top and flexed his muscles to the detainees, which further escalated the riot. The MPs were overwhelmed and the guards fired lethal rounds to protect the life of the compound MPs, whereby 5 detainees were wounded.

* November 24, 2003 - Riot and shooting of 12 detainees . . . Several detainees allegedly began to riot at about 1300 in all of the compounds at the Ganci encampment. This resulted in the shooting deaths of 3 detainees, 9 wounded detainees, and 9 injured US Soldiers.

A 15-6 investigation by COL Bruce Falcone (220th MP Brigade, Deputy Commander) concluded that the detainees rioted in protest of their living conditions, that the riot turned violent, the use of non-lethal force was ineffective, and, after the 320th MP Battalion CDR executed "Golden Spike,” the emergency containment plan, the use of deadly force was authorized.

* November 24, 2003 - Shooting of detainee at Abu Ghraib(320th MP Battalion). A detainee allegedly had a pistol in his cell and around 1830 an extraction team shot him with less than lethal and lethal rounds in the process of recovering the weapon.

A 15-6 investigation by COL Bruce Falcone (220th Brigade, Deputy Commander) concluded that one of the detainees in tier 1A of the Hard Site had gotten a pistol and a couple of knives from an Iraqi Guard working in the encampment. Immediately upon receipt of this information, an ad-hoc extraction team consisting of MP and MI personnel conducted what they called a routine cell search, which resulted in the shooting of an MP and the detainee.

* December 17 2003 - Shooting by non-lethal means of detainee from Abu Ghraib (320th MP Battalion). Several detainees allegedly assaulted an MP at 1459 inside the Ganci Encampment, Abu Ghraib (BCCF). An SIR was initiated by SSG Matash (320th MP BRIGADE, S-3 Section).

The SIR indicated that three detainees assaulted an MP, which resulted in the use of a non-lethal shot that calmed the situation. [End of Excerpt]

Another incident much ballyhooed in the press as a "murder," looks a whole lot different in context of the Taguba Report, which says that on June 13, 2003:

"30-40 detainees rioted and pelted three interior MP guards with rocks. One guard was injured and the tower guards fired lethal rounds at the rioters injuring 7 and killing 1 detainee."

No wonder our understaffed military police units in Iraq felt they had to resort to intimidation and humiliation tactics in a bid to keep this gang of violent criminals and bloodthirsty terrorists at bay.

[Steven W.]

well if the terrorists had been given brand new plasma LCD televisions like the DemoncRATs and their comrades in the ACLU and trial lawyer unions will insist then they might not have been so hateful of the US ...

[Redbob]

"A detainee allegedly had a pistol in his cell and around 1830 an extraction team shot him with less than lethal and lethal rounds..."

Some of the extraction team must have been armed with 9mm's!
LOL!

[Redbob]

BTW, anyone remember that prisoner "uprising" in Afghanistan, by which our allies there managed to rid themselves (and us) of the most hardened Talibaners?

Pity we couldn't have managed something similar in Iraq - or in Guantanamo, for that matter.
We'll NEVER be able to rehab any of those fanatics - best we could do would be to neutralize them.

[Nick5]

Yeah, neutralize them, but not torture them. We're fighting for our ideals here, not just our side. If it just becomes about our side, what's the point?

[SMARTY]

These particulars do not alter the fact that there are more and better ways to detain and restrain prisoners than were initially used. The real fault was perhaps in the failure to anticipate that hardened and fanatical militants would be just as hardened and militant IN custody. I hope the situation is more organized now.

That said, the prisoners know (but will likely NEVER admit) that the bad treatment was the result of their behavior once in custody and was not the first and primary treatment extended to them as detainees.

I am trying very hard to see it both ways.

[Rifleman]

A 9mm is a .45 set on _stun_.

To put the prisoner of war problem into context, folks should read this: http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/1574882597/102-0595366-1887348?v=glance

It also comments on the problems of a military unprepared for the war that it is assigned to fight.

[Nick5]

If as Americans we start saying "well yes we tortured them but they started it", what makes us different from them? Bush is right to come out as strongly against this as he has.

[stlnative]

A 15-6 investigation by COL Bruce Falcone (220th Brigade, Deputy Commander) concluded that one of the detainees in tier 1A of the Hard Site had gotten a pistol and a couple of knives from an Iraqi Guard working in the encampment.

So they have an Iraqi working in the hard site as a guard. Is it possible that he may have lifted a photo cd that had all these pictures on them? (he surely was able to get a gun and few knifes to a prisoner on the inside... this means he surely could have lifted a photo cd, that one of the idiots left laying around) I understand that the photos were burned onto cd's by the people who had assess to the digital cameras. (which was stupid). I want to know how the media got all these pictures, surely our government did not hand them to the media.

[stlnative]

assess = access (grr!)

[NoClones]

gelding comes to mind as a permanent method of 'taking the wind out of [their] sails...'

and would certainly diminish the terrorists standing amongst their fellows given the islamist nature of these prisoners

but that would be cruel and unusual, however.

[WOSG]

How to deal with the 'hardened' militants.

I have come to the conclusion that we need death penalty by military tribunal for some of these most hardened terrorists. Anyone who killed a soldier or iraqi civilian through either a terrorist bombing or an IED should be subject to the death penalty.

We are treating them as prisoners of war but many of them are not like normal soldiers, they are like terrorists. Their loyalty is to our death and destruction, not to any rational cause.

[ImpBill]

What you mean these folks (prisoners) were not just innocent Iraqi men, totally victims of the nasty infidels occupying their peace loving country? Say it isn't so.

By no means does it excuse the behavior of the extreme minority of our troops fighting for "our freedoms and security". But how many Americans stop to think about the "total picture" of what is going on and with whom we are dealing? And of course we can't leave it up to our media and elected officials to point out these apparent "non-politically correct" facts.

[TheDon]

The "Attack of the Pictures" is nothing more than another battle in the propaganda war going on as part of the War on Terror. Context is everything, and those pictures, provided without any context, are being used to demoralize the American Public, the Iraqis, and the world at large against the ongoing war. If you rush to judgement without hearing the context, you are casualty of that battle.

[litehaus]

"A 9mm is a .45 set on _stun_."

Cute! I like that one........

[kattracks]

Finally something that legitimizes sodomy!!

There are some on here who are more than willing to believe the worst, without any proof. Here are some facts. Of couse, you may not be interested in them, as it seems you are ready to condemn before any investigation determines exactly what is true and what isn't.

It's that list of uncorroborated allegations that the media has been ballyhooing as "torture," including claims that U.S. MPs engaged in:

* Breaking chemical lights and pouring the phosphoric liquid on detainees;

* Threatening detainees with a charged 9mm pistol;

* Pouring cold water on naked detainees;

* Beating detainees with a broom handle and a chair;

* Threatening male detainees with rape;

* Allowing a military police guard to stitch the wound of a detainee who was injured after being slammed against the wall in his cell;

* Sodomizing a detainee with a chemical light and perhaps a broom stick.

* Using military working dogs to frighten and intimidate detainees with threats of attack, and in one instance actually biting a detainee. [End of Excerpt]

Before the press labels any more of our soldiers serving in Iraq guilty until proven innocent, perhaps reporters should make it clear that the most damaging of the prison abuse complaints come from Saddam Hussein's dead-enders, al Qaeda terrorists who have joined their cause and common street criminals - all of whom have a vested interested in seeing the U.S. fail in Iraq.

What the Press Won't Tell You About the Taguba Report

[SMARTY]

They ARE stateless.

Many are not welcome and/or have been exiled as criminals from their respective countries.

Our forces do not expect stateless, terrorist murderers (who kill women and children) to be and do not view them as their military or social equivalents.

That dignity and nobility usually accorded to worthy enemies who defend their country, an ideology, their own property or countrymen is not and cannot be allowed these killers who do not (even among themselves) claim a common ideological bond and who only pretend to a religious conviction to disguise their wanton blood lust and addiction to hatred.

Even if they succeeded in Iraq or anywhere, what kind of a world would they make? A world of HATE and of the domination of all who are not like them. What idiocy defends that?

[gcruse]

It doesn't change anything.
What these soldiers did was unacceptable. Fighting terrorism means either killing them or terrifying them so severely that they will never consider terrorist activity again. Humiliating the bastards just makes them and the street madder.

[highlandbreeze]

I really wish I had not gone any farther then the end of THAT thread.