USA Disgraced by Some Soldiers in Iraq?

At today's New York Times:

An internal Army investigation has found a virtual collapse of the command structure in a prison outside Baghdad where American enlisted personnel are accused of committing acts of abuse and humiliation against Iraqi detainees.

A report on the investigation said midlevel military intelligence officers were allowed to skirt the normal chain of command to issue questionable orders to enlisted personnel from the reserve military police unit handling guard duty there.

The Army has already begun one investigation into the abuse allegations. Maj. Gen. George R. Fay, the incoming deputy commander of Army intelligence, is examining the interrogation practices of military intelligence officers at all American-run prisons in Iraq and not just the Abu Ghraib prison.

A second review was ordered Saturday by Lt. Gen. James R. Helmly, head of the Army Reserve, to assess the training of all reservists, especially military police and intelligence officers, the soldiers most likely to handle prisoners. Six members of an Army Reserve military police unit assigned to Abu Ghraib face charges of assault, cruelty, indecent acts and maltreatment of detainees....

This is disgraceful and inexcusable. Anybody guilty of "assault, cruelty, indecent acts and maltreatment of detainees" should be punished appropriately. And I trust that they will be.

And tell me something. "Assault, cruelty, indecent acts and maltreatment of" women, children, and non-Muslims is a daily affair all over the Muslim world — because it's the Muslim world. If you know of any media in, say, Arab countries that bring such inhumanities to light in order to condemn them and stop them, or of any agencies in, say, Muslim countries that investigate such inhumanities and punish the perpetrators, please let me know.

Lane Core Jr. CIW P — Mon. 05/03/04 06:39:27 AM
Categorized as International.