Judge orders US Army release Abu Ghraib pics

NEW YORK - A federal judge has ordered the US Army to release more than 100 photographs and several videos taken by an American soldier relating to detainee abuse at the Abu Ghraib prison in Iraq, according to court documents.

Judge Alvin Hellerstein of the US District Court in Manhattan late on Wednesday ordered the Defence Department to process 144 photographs by June 30.

The photographs and videos, to be edited so the faces of soldiers are not shown, were provided by Sgt. Joseph Darby, whose photos set off the Iraqi prisoner abuse scandal more than a year ago.

Hellerstein gave the government 10 days to estimate how long it would take to edit four videos, also to be handed over.

The order came in response to a Freedom of Information Act suit filed in 2003 by civil rights groups, including the American Civil Liberties Union, regarding treatment of US-held detainees in Iraq, Afghanistan and Guantanamo Bay.

The government declined to comment on the order, but had argued that turning over the documents would violate the Geneva Convention because soldiers could be identified.

ACLU attorney Amrit Singh said, "These documents reveal that the torture of detainees in US custody was widespread and systemic. They underscore the need for an independent investigation into which government officials were ultimately responsible for the abuse."

She said many documents were still being withheld.

"This is just a fraction of what remains to be litigated in this case," she said.

More than 36,000 documents have been released so far to the ACLU, who has filed suit against several government departments, including the CIA, FBI and Department of Justice.

- REUTERS