LONDON,
April 30 (IslamOnline.net & News Agencies) - Prime Minister Tony
Blair's human rights envoy to Baghdad declared she was "shocked”
at pictures showing U.S. troops meting out apparent torture and sexual
abuse to Iraqi prisoners, a matter that prompted outrage in Britain
Friday, April 30, and Washington said it was probing.
"I
think they are absolutely terrible. I am shocked," Ann Clwyd told
BBC radio about the photographs, shown on U.S. television, some
depicting grinning troops posing with naked Iraqi prisoners in a variety
of demeaning, sexual poses.
The
photographs also brought distinctly negative coverage in some newspapers
in Britain, Washington's principal ally in the Iraq war and subsequent
occupation, according to Agence France-Presse (AFP).
Blair
himself was reportedly appalled at the matter, according to his official
spokesman Friday, reported AFP.
"The
U.S. army spokesman has said this morning that he is appalled, that
those responsible have let their fellow soldiers down, and those are
views that we would associate the UK government with," the
spokesman told reporters at Downing Street.
Asked
if Blair was similarly appalled, the spokesman replied: "The
government view is the same as that of the U.S. army."
He
added that the photographs were in "direct contravention of all
policy under which the coalition operates".
The
pictures were aired on U.S. television, with many subsequently printed
Friday in newspapers in Britain.
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Clwyd sad she thought the images were “absolutely terrible. I am shocked" |
The
right-wing Daily Mail splashed across its entire front page a picture of
a hooded Iraq prisoner with wires attached to his hands standing on a
small box, with a caption saying the man had been told he would be
electrocuted if he fell off.
"We
are losing their hearts and minds," was the unequivocal headline of
the paper's main editorial comment.
Clwyd,
a lawmaker from Blair's ruling Labour Party who for many years
campaigned over human rights under deposed dictator Saddam Hussein and
backed the U.S.-led war to remove him, said she had previously raised
concerns with U.S. officials about the treatment of prisoners at the Abu
Gharib prison.
"I
made the point that there must be answers, because I found it very
difficult to get answers, and I was told by a very senior person there:
'We don't do this kind of thing'," she said.
"Clearly
the people in charge did not know this was going on."
Former
British foreign secretary and ex-Balkans envoy David Owen said that
Britain's reputation in Iraq would also be affected by the photographs.
"I
hope, I believe, nothing like this happens in the British army. But
there is no joy for us," he said.
"What
happens with the Americans of course impacts on us. We are in it
together. It hurts us as well.
"Things
go wrong in every conflict. But this is very bad to happen at this time."
The
editor of London-based Arabic newspaper al-Quds al-Arabi commented that
the photographs were "the end of the story" for the United
States in Iraq.
"People
will be extremely angry ... sexual abuse is the worst thing in that part
of the world. It is shocking to all Muslims," Abdel Bari Atwan said.
"America
has lost the battle completely."
For
its part, London-based human rights group Amnesty International said it
was shocked at the pictures "but, sadly, not surprised".
"Amnesty
International has taken numerous testimonies from Iraqis who allege
torture at Abu Gharib and other prisons, where they are held
incommunicado and without charge," said Kate Allen, British
director for Amnesty.
But
Clwyd said that however bad the mistreatment, there was no comparison
with the situation under Saddam.
"A
small number of cases, horrible though they are - you cannot compare
that with the tens of thousands of people Saddam Hussein was responsible
for executing and torturing," she said.
U.S.
Probing
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Amnesty International said it was shocked at the pictures "but, sadly, not surprised” |
Meanwhile,
the White House Friday denounced the alleged of Iraqi prisoners by U.S.
occupation forces, saying the United States "will not
tolerate" such behavior and vowing that those responsible will be
punished, reported AFP.
"We
cannot tolerate it," spokesman Scott McClellan told reporters.
"The military is taking strong action against the individuals
responsible for these despicable acts."
U.S.
President George W. Bush has known about the allegations of misconduct
"for a while" and expects "appropriate action to be taken
against these individuals," he said. "We will not tolerate it."
Asked
whether he feared anti-U.S. fallout from widely disseminated photographs
and television footage of the abuse, McClellan replied: "It does
not represent what we stand for."
"The
military has made it very clear that they are going to pursue, to the
fullest extent of the law, these individuals," said McClellan.
The
U.S. military said Thursday it was investigating the serious
allegations.
In
March, U.S.
officials revealed that six soldiers faced military trial for
possible violations of the rights of Iraqi prisoners they had been
guarding. But, at the time, they offered few details. Following the
airing of the photographs, they now admit that the affair has become
even more far-reaching, according to British daily the Independent
Friday.
“In
addition to the criminal charges against the six - all military police
belonging to the 800th Brigade - investigators have recommended
disciplinary action against seven U.S. officers who helped run the
prison, including Brigadier General Janis Karpinski, the commander of
the 800th Brigade.”
A
senior U.S. military officer in Baghdad said Thursday Karpinski, in
charge of Abu Gharib prison, was suspended in late January after the six
U.S. soldiers were indicted for mistreating prisoners at the notorious
prison.
The
Independent New York correspondent said “the revelations are acutely
embarrassing for Washington, which has emphasized repeatedly its record
of liberating the Iraqi people from the inhumane repression of Saddam
Hussein”.
