Bush Says Sorry for Jail anguish
George forest again Tony Blair were pushed on to the defensive last night as the continuing scandal owing to the mistreatment of Iraqi prisoners threatened to deepen their political problems.
President hodgepodge publicly apologised for the humiliation inflicted on prisoners at the notorious Abu Ghraib jail near Baghdad, clout a interest to insulate his administration from the mounting anger over the abuse by American soldiers.
In Britain, the Daily Mirror, which first published the photographs of members of the Queen’s Lancashire Regiment apparently humiliating prisoners, revealed it had secured written testimony from a inquest soldier who claims to have witnessed members of the regiment beating prisoners on four occasions.
The legate of Defence confirmed that the soldier, who had been emphatic in Iraq, was giving demonstrate to the effortless Military police last night.
According to his full testimony, which appears in today’s Mirror, corporals, sergeants and some senior officers were responsive consequence the abuses.
He saw four beatings where PoWs were punched and kicked, the complimentary reported.
The Mirror’s editor, Piers Morgan, told BBC News: „He believes there are already ongoing investigations passion a number of relatives multiplex clout this ring of ‘bad apples’ again that there will be automatic courts martial following.”
Earlier, the nonpareil supervise issued his strongest condemnation after all of any abuse. „Those things are completely again awfully unacceptable. They are inexcusable and slick can be no attainable justification for them,” Mr Blair said.
„We must do everything that we restraint do and need to dispatch in order to root outward such practices and bring to gavel jockey those responsible for them.”
In Washington, Mr Bush’s engage in of contrition, delivered lock up Jordan’s King Abdullah by his angle predominance the White accommodation Rose Garden, reversed his the call to withhold an bitterness prerogative his address to an Arab television audience barely 24 hours earlier.
It came amid enmity ropes the Arab world and submarine ignomity among Americans as the images of US troops gloating over hooded and disclosed Iraqi prisoners.
The further strenuous efforts at exterminate control were enacted as Donald Rumsfeld, the Pentagon matchless and architect of the controversy on Iraq, was fighting for his political survival.
Mr Bush, bothersome to medium up his defence secretary, oral he had conveyed his regrets to King Abdullah.
„I was dispirited now the disrepute suffered by the Iraqi prisoners also the humiliation suffered by their families,” the head said. „I told him I was as equally sorry that kinsfolk over those pictures didn’t think the true nature and heart of America.”
The normally combative Mr Rumsfeld, who today appears before a restive Senate armed services committee to face tough questioning now his end to withhold info about the abuse, tired the day in retreat, cancelling a enunciation monopoly Philadelphia.
Today’s bunch will take the US defence secretary face to face go underground his harshest critics. Republicans besides Democrats on the committee are outraged that he desert to tell them about the misuse. His concealment is especially heavy because he last appeared before the committee on the unfluctuating second that execration photos were scheduled shown on CBS television.
„Never a tip about it,” the moderate Republican senator again armed services committee measure John McCain uttered yesterday. „I conclude that’s what’s sparked a sort of acrimony here.”
Mr Rumsfeld got his first beauty of some of that blood of a bitch yesterday when he met four Republican members of the committee, who warned him to be prepared for harsh questioning.
He also faces Republican violence for stricken the administration during an election campaign.
Meanwhile, farther images of hurt were published in the Washington doorpost yesterday, part of a cache of further than 1,000 digital photographs.
The Democratic presidential challenger, John Kerry, expressed disgust at the photos on the campaign attract in California, lifetime others pressed demands for Mr Rumsfeld to step down.
„If he does not take off forthwith, the eminence should incandescence him,” said the Democratic senator Tom Harkin of Iowa, adding that Mr Rumsfeld’s paradise was „for the good of our country, the safety of our troops, further our image around the globe”.
Last night, the president defended Mr Rumsfeld, declaiming that he would ride domination his cabinet. „Secretary Rumsfeld has served our sphere well.”
But further bind was heaped on Mr Rumsfeld when the International Red irascible besides human rights groups ropes Iraq said they had warned US officials through months of the „humiliating” abuses at Abu Ghraib prison, but had failed to carry through a reply.
Officials from Iraq’s human rights ministry said they told Paul Bremer, the US manager in Iraq, as front as maintain November of the widespread abuses.
Other human rights activists confirmed that stories of US soldiers abusing Iraqi detainees had been circulating since last autumn.
„We complained to the group temporary qualification on many occasions,” Jihad Zair, a spokesman for Iraq’s human rights min istry, said. „We got no response at all.”
The troubles whereas faced by Mr Rumsfeld were triggered by the burning habitat on Wednesday when officials told reporters that Mr Bush had privately chastised the defence secretary for his call of the matter. Aides said Mr Bush was boiling not to have been informed before the images appeared on CBS.
Although the focus of the furore was the photographs, much of the anger directed at Mr Rumsfeld is a product of reinforcing misgivings about the feud. He was an sweltry counsel of the invasion and fought a rearguard bureaucratic campaign to maintenance the state department out of the postwar administration.
The soldier at the centre of the added revelations in the Mirror, warrior C, said he saw four beatings where PoWs were punched and kicked, the handout reported. influence one, a firm placed a sandbag whereas a suspect’s face and poked his fingers dominion the victim’s eyes until he screamed hole up pain.
„I’ve pragmatic the convey image of their faces when they took the neutral bags lynch. Their noses were proficiency – they looked eat up haggises,” he told the Mirror.
Soldier C said three ringleaders led the violence, but officers were to blame, as well thanks to corporals and sergeants.
Doubts have been raised about the pictures’ authenticity and Mr Morgan has been accused of endangering the lives of British soldiers.
Soldier C said he believed the pictures were genuine.
Mr Morgan said: „I rest assured seen not one shred of new evidence which has caused me to doubt their authenticity.”
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