news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/4116601.stm
Printable version US pledges new jail abuse inquiry Death row at Abu Ghraib prison Allegations of abuse at Abu Ghraib have rocked the US military The White House has said fresh allegations of abuse of prisoners in Iraq and Guantanamo Bay by US military personnel will be "fully investigated" . A White House spokesman promised those responsible would be held to accou nt and measures taken to avoid a repeat. Memos between FBI officials detailing abuses, some dated after the Abu Gh raib jail scandal, were released as part of a lawsuit against the govern ment. The case is being brought by the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU). Scott McClellan, official spokesman for US President George W Bush, said: "The president expects that if there are allegations of abuse, that tho se allegations need to be taken seriously.
Send us your comments "They need to be fully investigated. People need to be held accountable a nd brought to justice if they're involved in wrongdoing, and preventativ e measures and corrective measures put in place to prevent it happening again." He said other allegations that Pentagon interrogators at Guantanamo prete nded to be FBI agents to avoid possible blame were a matter for Defence Secretary Donald Rumsfeld. ACLU executive director Anthony Romero said the documents raised grave qu estions about who was to blame for widespread detainee abuse. Last week documents released for the case threw up fresh revelations of a buse in Iraq by US marines, 13 of whom have been convicted and some jail ed. One of the memos released on Monday provided the account of an agent who observed "serious physical abuses" in Iraq.
More details of the memos It was dated 25 June - two months after the extent of abuse at Baghdad's Abu Ghraib prison was revealed - and was marked "urgent" and sent to FBI Director Robert Mueller. It described strangulation, beatings and the placing of lit cigarettes in to detainees' ears. Another document said an executive order signed by President George W Bus h had authorised techniques such as "sleep management", stress positions , use of military dogs and sensory deprivation. The White House was quick to respond to this allegation, saying: "What th e FBI agent wrote in the e-mail is wrong. There is no executive order on interrogation techniques." Loud music A document relating to Guantanamo suggests that detainees were shackled t o the floor in foetal positions for more than 24 hours at a time, left w ithout food and water and allowed to defecate on themselves. Other allegations contained in the e-mails include: * That military interrogators impersonated FBI agents, apparently to av oid possible blame in subsequent inquiries * That this method was approved by Deputy Defence Secretary Paul Wolfow itz * The rape of a juvenile male detainee at Abu Ghraib prison, currently under investigation * That one Guantanamo detainee was wrapped in an Israeli flag and bomba rded with loud music in an apparent attempt to soften his resistance to interrogation. The Pentagon has not commented on the latest allegations of abuse, but sp okesman Bryan Whitman denied that Mr Wolfowitz had approved impersonatio n techniques. The department has also said in relation to previous cases that it did no t tolerate abusive tactics. Some allegations in the documents are under investigation, the Pentagon a dded.
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