The Pentagon Releases 200 Images Of Detainee Abuse In Iraq And Afghanistan
Source: Newsweek
After years of fighting a court order, the Pentagon on Friday released nearly 200 pictures related to U.S. military abuse of detainees in Iraq and Afghanistan. The photographs belong to a larger collection of as many as 2,100 images taken between September 11, 2001, and January 22, 2009, and are part of various investigations into military detainee abuse. Some of the images are reported to be even more disturbing than the notorious ones from Abu Ghraib, but they remain classified.
The pictures, which the Pentagon posted in its online reading room, are best characterized as “benign,” a Defense Department spokesman tells Newsweek. The images, some of which are partially redacted to conceal identities, show alleged injuries sustained by detainees through harsh treatment while in U.S. military custody.
The images that remain classified allegedly show scenes like a female soldier pretending to sodomize a naked prisoner with a broom and troops pointing guns at detainees as they lie with their hands tied and with hoods over their heads.
In reaction to the photos’ release, Myles B. Caggins III, spokesman for the National Security Council, tells Newsweek the photos belong to a bygone era in American history: “The president has made very clear that the United States will ensure the safe, lawful, and humane treatment of individuals in U.S. custody in the context of armed conflicts, consistent with the treaty obligations of the United States, including the Geneva Conventions.”
According to a Defense Department spokesman, the photos the Pentagon released pertain to investigations that found approximately 14 substantiated allegations and 42 unsubstantiated ones.
Read more: http://www.newsweek.com/pentagon-defense-department-200-images-detainee-abuse-iraq-afghanistan-423625
ACLU LINK to photos
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