Prisoner Abuse in Iraq

This is Steve Ember with IN THE NEWS, in VOA Special English.

President Bush and Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld apologized
this week for the treatment of Iraqi prisoners in Baghdad. Mister
Bush said he was sorry for the suffering caused to the prisoners and
their families by the actions of American soldiers.

The President made the comments Thursday after meeting with King
Abdullah of Jordan at the White House. Mister Bush said he told the
King that the pictures from the Abu Ghraib prison made Americans
sick. In his words, "the wrongdoers will be brought to justice."

The pictures that have appeared in the media include those of
prisoners without clothing. Some of the men are tied to each other
in sexual positions. People in the United States and around the
world have denounced the treatment. In Washington, the House of
Representatives this week passed a resolution deploring the actions
of the soldiers involved.

As of now, six members of the Army are facing criminal charges
that could result in a military trial. There also are questions
about the activities of privately employed civilians used by the
Army. Some assist in questioning prisoners for intelligence.

Mister Rumsfeld told Senators Friday that he accepted full
responsibility. The Defense Secretary said he was seeking a way to
help those prisoners who suffered. He said they suffered at the
hands of a few members of the United States armed forces.

Mister Rumsfeld said the Army began an investigation in January
as soon as one soldier reported wrong-doing at the prison. He said
he first learned about the investigation when the Army announced it
in January. He said the Army then told the world more details in
March.

The now former government of Iraq had used the Abu Ghraib prison
to torture Iraqis. Senator Edward Kennedy noted that the
International Committee of the Red Cross had earlier compared
actions by Americans at the prison to torture. Mister Rumsfeld said
the Red Cross report had helped Army generals begin to make what he
called corrections at the prison.

The pictures were included in a
secret report written by Army Major General Antonio Taguba. His
investigators seized them from guards at the prison. Mister Rumsfeld
said he did not see the pictures, except those already released by
the media, until late this week. He said someone gave them to the
media illegally. C-B-S television first broadcast some of the
pictures last week. The Washington Post newspaper published more on
Thursday.

President Bush said his defense secretary should have told him
about the pictures. But he said Mister Rumsfeld is an important part
of his cabinet and will stay in his job.

Also this week, American officials said twenty-five prisoners had
died in Iraq and Afghanistan since two-thousand-two. They said two
deaths have been ruled criminal acts by soldiers. Officials say they
continue to investigate ten of the deaths.

IN THE NEWS, in VOA Special English, was written by Cynthia Kirk.
This is Steve Ember.