Uitgegeven: 13 mei 2004 07:38
WASHINGTON - Senatoren van de Republikeinse Partij willen niet dat er nog meer foto's van de Amerikaanse martelpraktijken in Irak openbaar gemaakt worden. Dat werd woensdag duidelijk nadat Congresleden honderden foto's en video's te zien hadden gekregen met als onderwerp de mishandeling van Iraakse gevangenen.
Na de besloten voorstelling voor de senatoren verklaarden de leiders van de Republikeinen in het Congres dat het vrijgeven van dergelijke foto's niet wenselijk is. Ze zouden een "inspiratie voor de vijand" kunnen vormen, aldus de voorzitter van de Senaatscommissie voor de Strijdkrachten John Warner.
Het openbaar maken van de foto's zou Amerikaanse militairen en burgers nodeloos in gevaar brengen. Bovendien achtten ze het vrijgeven van de kiekjes en video's schadelijk voor de militaire gerechtelijke stappen tegen aangeklaagde gevangenbewaarders.
Geplaatst door Goodnight
Ze zouden een "inspiratie voor de vijand" kunnen vormen, aldus de voorzitter van de Senaatscommissie voor de Strijdkrachten John Warner.
Net zoals Bush geinspireerd is door de onthoofdingsclip om de daders met veel colatoraldamage op te sporen en te doden.
Als we maar precies te weten komen wat er is gebeurd.
Alsof dat gehannes met foto's nog wat uitmaakt voor het beeld van wat daar gebeurt.
Lawmakers Shocked by New Images of Iraqi Prisoners
Wed May 12, 2004 06:48 PM ET
By Vicki Allen
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Members of the U.S. Congress saw new images of violence and sexual humiliation from a U.S.-run Iraqi prison on Wednesday in a closed viewing one lawmaker likened to a descent into "the wings of hell."
Lawmakers said images showed inmates apparently being coerced to commit sodomy, wounds possibly from dog bites, a number of dead bodies, and examples of "sadistic torture" and "sexual humiliation."
Some top Republicans urged that the still pictures and video not be released publicly, saying they could endanger U.S. forces overseas.
"What we saw is appalling. It is consistent with the photos that you've seen in the press to date. They go beyond that in many ways in terms of the various activities that are depicted," said Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist, a Tennessee Republican.
"There were some awful scenes. It felt like you were descending into one of the wings of hell and sadly it was our own creation," said Sen. Richard Durbin, an Illinois Democrat. "And when you think of the sadism, the violence, the sexual humiliation, after a while you just turn away, you just can't take it any more.
"I still cannot believe that this happened without the knowledge of those at higher levels," Durbin added.
Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld warned last week the pictures could worsen a scandal that ignited international outrage and shook U.S. global prestige as the United States seeks to stabilize Iraq.
Senators and members of the House of Representatives had a chance over several hours to look at some 1,600 images in separate secure rooms in a presentation conducted by the Pentagon, which kept custody of the material.
FORCED SODOMY
Many lawmakers said the images were similar to photographs shown around the world of naked prisoners stacked in a pyramid or positioned to simulate sex acts at the Abu Ghraib prison near Baghdad, but they said some were even more shocking.
Lawmakers said they did not see examples of outright rape, murder or abuses of children.
Sen. Peter Fitzgerald, an Illinois Republican, said "many of the same people were involved over and over" in the photographs. "I didn't see different characters than the ones who have been in the newspapers," he said.
Durbin described a picture of a man with half his head "blown off," lying on the ground in blood and gore, but said there was no explanation of where that was taken.
An Islamic Web site on Tuesday showed an American civilian, Nick Berg of suburban Philadelphia, being beheaded by an al Qaeda leader in Iraq in revenge for the "Satanic degradation" of Iraqi prisoners.
Senate Intelligence Committee Chairman Pat Roberts, a Kansas Republican, whose committee had a closed-door hearing with Stephen Cambone, defense undersecretary for intelligence, said there were "44 CIA people in and out of" Abu Ghraib prison, "a lot during the evening, over a period of time."
Congress is trying to establish whether the mistreatment was encouraged by intelligence personnel to "soften up" prisoners for interrogations.
Roberts also said two other U.S. prisons in Iraq were mentioned in the latest material, "but the abuses were not as severe."
'GUT WRENCHING'
Rep. Jane Harman, a California Democrat, said the new pictures showed "cruel and sadistic torture."
She described as "gut wrenching" images of a nearly naked man "handcuffed to a wall, beating his head against the wall, recoiling back and forward, probably trying to knock himself unconscious and avoid having to live through the experience."
Lawmakers said the images were shown fairly rapidly and with minimal explanation. Sen. James Jeffords, a Vermont independent, said the pictures were "horrible. But they go by so fast. Terrible scenes. ... It was click, click, click.
Senate Armed Services Committee Chairman John Warner, a Virginia Republican, urged that the images not be released before trials related to the abuses of detainees at the Abu Ghraib prison.
"I feel very strongly that these photographs should not be made public. I feel that it could possibly endanger the men and the women of the armed forces as they are serving and at great risk," Warner said. (Additional reporting by Anna Willard, Thomas Ferraro, Tabassum Zakaria and Donna Smith)
Eerst:
Geplaatst door Joesoef
Sen. Peter Fitzgerald, an Illinois Republican, said "many of the same people were involved over and over" in the photographs. "I didn't see different characters than the ones who have been in the newspapers," he said.
Maar dan:
Geplaatst door Joesoef
Roberts also said two other U.S. prisons in Iraq were mentioned in the latest material, "but the abuses were not as severe."
Eerst:
Geplaatst door Joesoef
Lawmakers said they did not see examples of outright rape, murder or abuses of children.
Maar dan:
Geplaatst door Joesoef
Durbin described a picture of a man with half his head "blown off," lying on the ground in blood and gore, but said there was no explanation of where that was taken.
Wat een hypocrieten die republikeinen, die foto's moeten gewoon openbaar gemaakt worden.
Op de manier kan iedereen zien dat het echt oorlog is, en niet zomaar een mop, videogame of een klinisch geheel is.
Mischien dat op deze wijze mensen verontrust raken dat er serieuze stappen ondernomen worden door burgers om deze onrechtvaardige, illegale en immorele oorlog te beindigen daar.
Die manier van vragen van die republikeinse senatoren bij die hearings daar ligt ook al zo veel hypocritie in besloten met vragen als:
Hadden die soldaten eigenlijk toestemming om die foto's te maken of hebben ze dat zonder enige permissie van hun meerderen gedaan?
En ...
Zijn er menselevens gered doordat wij de gevangenen op een bepaalde manier ondervraagd hebben zoals de inlichtingendiensten dat graag wilden?
Antwoord:
Hoge militair: O ja, we hebben hele structuren in kaart kunnen brengen van het verzet tegen onze troepen. Dat heeft zeker levens van onze troepen gered.
Op die manier begrijpt iedereen dat het in wezen beleid was en is iedere verontwaardiging gespeelde verontwaardiging. Maar de consequentie is absurd. Immers het gevolg van het achterhalen van die informatie door martelingen is nu juist dat alle troepen in Irak meer gevaar lopen.