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06/01/2005
Probe into allegations of abuse at Guantanamo Bay
A new investigation is to be held into allegations of abuse at the US military detention centre at Guantanamo Bay in Cuba.
The US Defense Department announced the move following the publication of documents from the FBI suggesting that there were concerns about the treatment of prisoners in the detention centre.
The documents, procured from the FBI by the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) under freedom of information legislation, allege torture and beatings of detainees as part of the "aggressive" interrogation techniques used on prisoners.
The probe into the allegations has been ordered by General Brantz Craddock of the US Army Southern Command, which has responsibility for the administration of the detention centre in Cuba.
Around 550 prisoners from 40 countries are being held in the centre. US forces captured most of the detainees being held at the centre during the campaign in Afghanistan.
The Pentagon has continually refuted the allegations, claiming that all prisoners are being treated in a humane fashion.
However, human rights groups, including Amnesty International, have maintained that the US authorities are allowing the systematic mistreatment of the prisoners who are being held without trial at the detention centre.
The latest allegations of the abuse of prisoners emerged following a lawsuit brought by pressure group the American Civil Liberties Union had procured the FBI documents.
The latest allegations of prisoner mistreatment by the US military follow on from the publication of graphic photographs last year depicting abuse at the military prison at Abu Ghraib prison in Iraq.
The documents released yesterday by the ACLU indicate that an FBI investigation into the use of "aggressive" interrogation techniques at Guantanamo was "sharply scaled back, and that records related to the FBI’s investigation are still being withheld".
ACLU Executive Director Anthony Romero commented: "Shameful as it is, the full story of our government’s sanctioned torture and abuse of detainees must see the light of day if we are to ever restore our reputation as a nation dedicated to the rule of law".
(SP)
The US Defense Department announced the move following the publication of documents from the FBI suggesting that there were concerns about the treatment of prisoners in the detention centre.
The documents, procured from the FBI by the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) under freedom of information legislation, allege torture and beatings of detainees as part of the "aggressive" interrogation techniques used on prisoners.
The probe into the allegations has been ordered by General Brantz Craddock of the US Army Southern Command, which has responsibility for the administration of the detention centre in Cuba.
Around 550 prisoners from 40 countries are being held in the centre. US forces captured most of the detainees being held at the centre during the campaign in Afghanistan.
The Pentagon has continually refuted the allegations, claiming that all prisoners are being treated in a humane fashion.
However, human rights groups, including Amnesty International, have maintained that the US authorities are allowing the systematic mistreatment of the prisoners who are being held without trial at the detention centre.
The latest allegations of the abuse of prisoners emerged following a lawsuit brought by pressure group the American Civil Liberties Union had procured the FBI documents.
The latest allegations of prisoner mistreatment by the US military follow on from the publication of graphic photographs last year depicting abuse at the military prison at Abu Ghraib prison in Iraq.
The documents released yesterday by the ACLU indicate that an FBI investigation into the use of "aggressive" interrogation techniques at Guantanamo was "sharply scaled back, and that records related to the FBI’s investigation are still being withheld".
ACLU Executive Director Anthony Romero commented: "Shameful as it is, the full story of our government’s sanctioned torture and abuse of detainees must see the light of day if we are to ever restore our reputation as a nation dedicated to the rule of law".
(SP)
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