Iraqi POWs Tortured by U.S./UK Forces: Amnesty [Baghdad 'Said' socialist anti-America NGO alert]

Middle East Online (online news service), London, England ^ | May 16, 2003

[Ragtime Cowgirl]

First Published 2003-05-16, Last Updated 2003-05-16 15:04:54 POWs taken mostly in southern Iraq Iraqi POWs tortured by US, UK forces: Amnesty Mistreatment of POWs includes beating with fist, feet, weapons and electric shocks. LONDON - At least 20 Iraqi prisoners of war, including civilians, said they had been tortured by British and US troops in central and southern Iraq, a spokesman for International Human Rights group Amnesty International said Friday. "As of Wednesday we had interviewed 20 people," Amnesty researcher Said Boumedouha said, referring to prisoners of war who alleged they had been tortured by the British and US military in Nasiriyah and around Basra. When asked, the researcher insisted that torture was the correct word to use for the handling of the prisoners, many of whom may have been suspected of being members of Iraqi militia. After returning from Amnesty's first fact-finding mission in Iraq since 1993, Boumedouha said the alleged mistreatment included "beatings with fists, with feet, also with weapons." "In one case we are talking about electric shocks being used against a man and in others people are being beaten for the whole night and are still being kicked and their teeth broken, I think you would call that torture," he said. The man claiming to have received electric shocks was believed to have been a Saudi who had entered the country from Syria during the war and was suspected of being a volunteer for president Saddam Hussein. Boumedouha acknowledged that Amnesty International had not presented any of the claims to British or US forces for any response. "We still have people on the ground in Iraq and we will continue to gain testimonies," he said. "Once that is complete we hope to provide a full dossier to present to the British and American authorities as well as publishing ourselves," he said. Amnesty International estimated up to half of the 20 people he interviewed were civilians and the rest military. The researcher said all the people he interviewed were free at the time he met them and most had been detained in and around Basra.

[WellsFargo94]

Are these the Iraqi's dressed like the US and UK forces?

[smith288]

From a society where you learn to lie as a means of survival?

[Moose4]

I'm surprised it took this long for these accusations to start flying.

Amnesty International is a wonderful organization...in theory. In practice, they tend to have a bit of, shall we say, a bias as to who they consider "human rights violators."

}:-)4

[may18]

In desert storm we had the same accusations regarding US/UK troops

guess what, they all proved to be groundless

[Ragtime Cowgirl]

Amnesty International suggests that if you take them up on one of their international campaigns (ie. their recent campaign against our war in Iraq) you let them know:

 

If you write by e-mail, please send us a copy of your letter at cc.appeals@amnesty.org. If you receive feedback from the government official, please forward a copy to us at gov.replies@amnesty.org

 

My recommendation: Amnesty International representatives should spend time digging mass graves under the supervision of the families whose loved ones were tortured and murdered by Saddam's regime.

[Rodney King]

Notice how 20 people claimed to have been tortured turned into 20 people tortured.

[cwb]

Yeah...and with reporters scouring the countryside and emdeds in almost every unit, not one "reporter" witnesses or hears of such treatment. Maybe those counterfeit US military uniforms came in handy after all.

What amazes me, is that with the possibility of 15,000 (plus) mass-graves, Amnesty International is chasing dowm (alledged) stories of US/British mistreatment.

[tomahawk]

Lies.

[Ragtime Cowgirl]

Mew havoc? Lol!

Amnesty International is now officially irrelevant. Follow the money. Our big bad military industrial complex proved to be kinder, braver, and far more "humanitarian" than all the socialist NGO so-called human rights groups who exploit the weak and blame the strong, who prefer slavery to messy freedom and excuse and overlook torture and mass-murder as long as the kids aren't bothering Big Brother.

[Dark Knight]

I am in complete agreement. The only reason they choose to vilify the US and Britain, is because they can. It's easy. Nothing bad will happen to them. OTOH if they really wanted to root out torture, they might have to go to the places that are experts and don't give a hoot (substitute own favorite word here) if they kill AI interlopers.

I was on their website where they were accusing the US of being one of the horrid five countries that executed more people than the rest of the world combined. China was number one with more than 1000 (estimated). The US was way down on a list of five with about 70 for that year. Afghanistan, Iraq and Iran were omitted from the list, because they did not report any figures. Maybe if they looked where the real atrocities were being committed they could have an impact.

They are a joke.

DK

[MEG33]

My email..The 600 murdered Kuwaiti POWs are in their graves.I await your outrage.

[yooper]

War is hell, folks. Mistreatment of prisoners has been a constant in every conflict, and that includes rough handling of prisoners by the US in every conflict we've ever been in. I know that isn't a pretty picture or a popular thing to say, but it happens to be the truth.

And I support it. Many lives have been saved throughout our involvement in wars by the extraction of information from otherwise reluctant prisoners. I'm sure we try to keep this to a minimum, but when we have someone in custody that we know has information, we will get it by every means possible, including rough treatment.

It isn't pretty, but it is a fact.

[PISANO]

Torture LEAVES scars, marks and lasting injuries that are visible for months. I will wager a months salary that "AMNESTY" didn NOT photograph any torture victims' injuries!! We will just hear their socialist/marxist crappola about how awful the United States treats pows. They suck, pure and simple.

[Arpege92]

Once Amnesty International is done investigating human rights violations in Iraq, Iran and Cuba, then get back to me about these so called violations committed by US and UK military personel.

[cwb]

I believe what you say was true...and I actually support it, also. But things have changed thanks to our PC culture. I don't believe the US soldiers would even have to go this route since there would be plenty of Iraq dissidents to do the dirty work for us. I just think "this" story is a hoax...and the political implications are to dangerous for the US in light of all other criticism. There's just so many dfferent ways of going about this without having US/British fingerprints on it.

[prairiebreeze]

Horse Hockey!

Hi RC.

Prairie

[duckman]

"Mistreatment of POWs includes beating with fist, feet, weapons and electric shocks."
What really set the POW's off was, they were forced to watch movies of Helen Thomas in a thong bikini.

[RJayneJ]

Quote of the Day by Free ThinkerNY

[Contra]

At least they're alive to be "abused," if they prefer US/UK could just put a bullet in their heads and the abuse would end.