Posted on 05/03/2004 8:48:15 AM PDT by TexKat
BAGHDAD, Iraq - Seven more U.S. soldiers have been reprimanded in the alleged abuse of Iraqi prisoners, and the U.S. officer who oversaw Baghdad's notorious Abu Ghraib prison suggested Monday that more may be involved.
On the orders of Lt. Gen. Ricardo Sanchez, commander of U.S. forces in Iraq, six of the soldiers — all officers and noncommissioned officers — have received the most severe level of administrative reprimand in the U.S. military, a military official said on condition of anonymity. A seventh officer was given a more lenient admonishment.
The official said he believed investigations of the officers were complete and they would not face further action or court martial. However, the reprimands could spell the end of their careers.
Another six U.S. military police already are facing criminal charges.
The U.S.-appointed Iraqi Governing Council joined the chorus of international criticism of the alleged abuse, terming it a violation of international law and the Geneva Conventions.
In a statement Monday, the council demanded that U.S. authorities allow Iraqi judges to take part in the interrogation of prisoners and open the detention centers to inspection by Iraqi officials.
Brig. Gen. Janis Karpinski, who oversaw the prison, said on ABC's "Good Morning America" that she did not know about the prisoner abuse while it was happening.
"They were despicable acts," Karpinski said Monday. "Had I known anything about it, I certainly would have reacted very quickly."
Karpinski, commander of the 800th Military Police Brigade, said that in one photograph from the prison, there appeared to be more Americans involved in the alleged abuse than the six MPs who have already been charged.
"Absolutely. One photograph showed — it didn't show faces completely, but the photograph showed 32 boots," Karpinski told ABC. "I'm saying other people than the military police."
It was not clear if that would include the seven soldiers reported reprimanded Monday.
Last week, CBS' "60 Minutes II" broadcast images allegedly showing Iraqis stripped naked, hooded and being tormented by their U.S. captors.
An internal U.S. Army report found that Iraqi detainees were subjected to "sadistic, blatant and wanton criminal abuses," according to The New Yorker magazine.
At a news conference Monday in Baghdad, Iraqi Foreign Minister Hoshyar Zibari strongly condemned the alleged abuse and called for an independent inquiry into the reports.
"The position of the Foreign Ministry is to condemn these kind of behaviors," he said. "We call for an independent inquiry to investigate these allegations" so that the perpetrators "be brought to justice."
Karpinski, who oversaw the Army-run detention facilities in Iraq, told The New York Times that she believed military commanders were trying to shift the blame for the abuses from military intelligence officers in Iraq to the reservists.
"We're disposable," she said of the military's attitude toward reservists. "Why would they want the active-duty people to take the blame? They want to put this on the M.P.'s and hope that this thing goes away. Well, it's not going to go away."
Karpinski told ABC the cell blocks at Abu Ghraib where some of the alleged abuse occurred were "under the military intelligence control."
"It was part of Abu Ghraib prison operation, but those cell blocks ... and the prison was actually under the control of the military intelligence command at the time."
Brig. Gen. Mark Kimmitt, chief U.S. military spokesman in Iraq, said on ABC that he isn't sure Army military intelligence "had anything to do with the individual acts of criminal behavior."
"Those were clearly the acts of individuals," Kimmitt said, appearing on the program after Karpinski. "They made the choice to do those. And now they seem to be a little concerned they've been caught and being prosecuted for that."
Kimmitt added, however, that the investigation is reviewing "concerns expressed about the military intelligence."
Asked whether more people are under investigation, Kimmitt said it's possible but he didn't want to "pry into" an ongoing probe.
"Something's going on here that's wrong and we need to get to the bottom of this. There's been determination to open up every door and find out what's going on," Kimmitt said.
Karpinski's lawyer, Neal Puckett, told "Good Morning, America" that while his client received "an admonishment" from her commander, she has not been suspended or relieved of her command.
It was only a matter of time before an honorable soldier reported these incidents. As far as Karpinsi is concerned, does anyone know her resume?
But, I am sick and tired of the Arab media and their pals in the US leftist media whining about all this. They showed the murder, burning and hanging up of bodies by their Religion of Peace pals, and yell outrage at this? They can kiss my red, white and blue ass! It is time to make a parking lot out of that sticking hole. The loss of another soldier or Marine is not worth a thousand of them in my book! To hell with that stink hole.
There had better be Courts Martial, convictions and years in the Brig. This is serious stuff, and we must set a standard.
It is your job to know, Ma'am. I trust you will be dishonorably discharged.
What's the plural of slimy terrorist scum? I'll explain later.
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