Iraqi prisoners sodomised and beaten, claims US magazine

11.05am

WASHINGTON - Iraqi prisoners faced numerous "sadistic, blatant and wanton criminal abuses" by US soldiers, including sodomy and beatings, according to a US Army report quoted by the New Yorker magazine.

The New Yorker said it had obtained a 53-page, internal US military report into alleged abuses at the notorious Abu Ghraib prison outside Baghdad. In an article posted on its website on Saturday, the magazine said the report had been authorised by Lt. Gen. Ricardo Sanchez, the top US officer in Iraq, and was completed in February.

The May 10 issue of the magazine goes on sale on Sunday.

The army report listed abuses such as "breaking chemical lights and pouring the phosphoric liquid on 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; sodomising a detainee with a chemical light and perhaps a broom stick".

The report, written by Maj. Gen. Antonio Taguba, said evidence to support the allegations included "detailed witness statements and the discovery of extremely graphic photographic evidence".

A US defence official, who asked not to be identified, said he had not specifically heard about the report cited by the New Yorker, but said:

"We take all reports of detainee abuse seriously. All allegations of mistreatment are investigated. We are committed to treating all persons under our control with dignity, respect and humanity...The US Army has acted immediately in all cases of alleged abuse."

News of the military report comes days after photographs showing abuse by US troops of Iraqi prisoners were published and broadcast around the globe.

The photos showed US troops smiling, posing, laughing or giving the thumbs-up sign as naked, male Iraqi prisoners were stacked in a pyramid or positioned to simulate sex acts with one another.

US President George W Bush said he was deeply disgusted by the abuse but said only a "few people" were to blame. He defended the conduct of the US occupation forces as the White House scrambled to head off a backlash in Iraq and across the Arab world.

A British newspaper also published pictures showing British soldiers apparently urinating on a shackled Iraqi prisoner of war. Prime Minister Tony Blair said on Saturday that abuse of Iraqi prisoners was "completely and totally unacceptable".

US officials said on Thursday that the military is weighing disciplinary action against the Army general who was in charge of the Abu Ghraib prison, a centre of torture and executions under toppled President Saddam Hussein's government.

The US military now holds several thousand prisoners at Abu Ghraib, most of them rounded up on suspicion of carrying out attacks against US-led forces.

The US military announced on March 20 it had brought criminal charges against six soldiers with the 800th Military Police Brigade, which could lead to courts-martial. The charges, stemming from a probe launched in January, relate to accusations of abuses carried out in November and December 2003 on around 20 detainees at the prison.

The charges included indecent acts with another person, maltreatment, battery, dereliction of duty and aggravated assault, Morgenthaler said.

- REUTERS

Herald Feature: Iraq