SWITZERLAND: THE RED CROSS CONFIRMS CONTENTS OF REPORT DETAILING WIDESPREAD ABUSE OF DETAINEES IN IRAQ
Record ID:
649133
SWITZERLAND: THE RED CROSS CONFIRMS CONTENTS OF REPORT DETAILING WIDESPREAD ABUSE OF DETAINEES IN IRAQ
- Title: SWITZERLAND: THE RED CROSS CONFIRMS CONTENTS OF REPORT DETAILING WIDESPREAD ABUSE OF DETAINEES IN IRAQ
- Date: 9th May 2004
- Summary: (W6) GENEVA. SWITZERLAND (MAY 7, 2004) (REUTERS) 1. SLV EXTERIOR OF RED INTERNATIONAL COMMITTEE OF RED CROSS (ICRC) HEADQUARTERS 0.04 2. LAS /SCU RED CROSS FLAGS FLYING OUTSIDE HQ 0.16 3. REPORTERS 4. (SOUNDBITE) (English) PIERRE KRAEHENBUEHL, DIRECTOR OF ICRC OPERATIONS, SAYING: "The definitions you will have seen from report that the elements that we found were tantamount to torture, that is quote that comes from the report and I think you will have different definitions of what torture amounts to, what we feel and I think you have seen that from the photographs and certainly what you find there is that there were clearly instances of degrading and inhuman treatment." 5. (SOUNDBITE) (English) PIERRE KRAEHENBUEHL, DIRECTOR OF ICRC OPERATIONS, SAYING "There are elements inside it that refer to actions that were contrary to international human law, very clearly in that report, and the approach is because those were signatories and linked to the obligations under international humanitarian law of the states themselves, when we submit a report it is for them to take action on it and that is the reason why we monitor and follow up visits is because we want to verify whether any measures were taken up on the basis of our recommendations. As I said earlier, in some issues, on some matters, yes, others, not, and that is something that we have as a continued dialogue with them." 5. MEDIA RECORDING 6. (SOUNDBITE) (English) PIERRE KRAEHENBUEHL, DIRECTOR OF ICRC OPERATIONS, SAYING "What we have observed are situations which, from a human point of view, are degrading ill-treatment and some instances and aspects that we have seen, the report was quoted as being "tantamount to torture". Now what we don't go is the further step to then say, as a tribunal would, 'what does this qualify as in legal terms beyond that' but they are actions that are contrary to international humanitarian law." 7. MEDIA LISTENING 8. (SOUNDBITE) (English) PIERRE KRAEHENBUEHL, DIRECTOR OF ICRC OPERATIONS, SAYING "I will however say that it is clear our findings do not allow us to conclude that what we are dealing with here in the case of Abu Ghraib were isolated acts of individual members of the coalition forces. What we have described amounts to a pattern and a broad system." 9. KRAEHENBUEHL SEATED AT DESK 2.47 Initials Script is copyright Reuters Limited. All rights reserved
- Embargoed: 24th May 2004 13:00
- Keywords:
- Location: GENEVA, SWITZERLAND
- Country: Switzerland
- Reuters ID: LVADN3DUG7LFHGP5X74EJW4WZW2X
- Story Text: Red Cross confirms contents of report detailing
widespread abuse of Iraqi detainees.
Iraqi detainees were subjected to "serious
violations", with abuse so widespread it may have been
condoned by U.S.-led coalition forces, the International
Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) said on Friday (May 7, 2004).
Breaking with its usual vow of silence, the
Geneva-based humanitarian organisation said visits to
coalition detention centres in Iraq, carried out between
March and November 2003, had shown infringements of
international treaties on the treatment of prisoners of war.
In some cases, the ill-treatment was "tantamount to
torture," particularly when interrogators were seeking
information or confessions, the ICRC said in a report,
parts of which were published in U.S. financial daily the
Wall Street Journal.
Pierre Kraehenbuehl, director of ICRC operations,
confirmed the contents of the report at a news conference
but said the Red Cross, whose reports are confidential,
would not issue the rest of the document.
He said the report referred mainly to the actions of
U.S. forces at Baghdad's notorious Abu Ghraib prison and
elsewhere, although the ICRC had also expressed concerns
over the past year to British commanders. He gave no
further details.
"Our findings do not allow us to conclude that what we
were dealing with at Abu Ghraib were isolated acts of
individual members of coalition forces. What we have
described is a pattern and a broad system," he said.
Pictures of grinning U.S. soldiers abusing naked Iraqis
at Abu Ghraib -- the largest prison in the country and
notorious for torture under Iraqi President Saddam Hussein
-- have sparked an international outcry.
The excerpts published by the Wall Street Journal spoke
of the use of ill-treatment that "went beyond exceptional
cases and might be considered a practice tolerated" by
coalition forces.
That differs sharply from the view of senior officials
in the Bush administration that military higher-ups had not
condoned abuse, the newspaper said.
In the report, the ICRC said prisoners at Abu Ghraib
were held naked in empty cells and beaten by soldiers.
Three former military policemen at the prison told Reuters
on Thursday that abuse was commonplace.
The humanitarian group also said coalition forces fired
on unarmed prisoners from watchtowers and killed some of
them, as well as committing "serious violations" of the
Geneva Conventions governing treatment of war prisoners.
The Red Cross said on Thursday (May 6) it had
repeatedly urged the United States to take "corrective
action" at the jail.
- Copyright Holder: REUTERS
- Copyright Notice: (c) Copyright Thomson Reuters 2015. Open For Restrictions - http://about.reuters.com/fulllegal.asp
- Usage Terms/Restrictions: None