A federal appeals court on Monday ordered the release of 21 photographs it said depicted prisoner abuse by US soldiers in Afghanistan and Iraq, which rights groups say prove abuse was widespread. The pictures, which have never been made public and are part of US Army investigative files, were first ordered released, with redaction, in 2006 by US District Judge Alvin Hellerstein after he reviewed them and ruled they were of critical public interest. Their release was held up while the US Department of Defence appealed, arguing the release would endanger US soldiers and result in an unwarranted invasion of...