U.S. forces still detaining Iraqi youths; reports suggest some abused

[nosmokes]

go to original

News Brief
U.S. forces still detaining Iraqi youths; reports suggest some abused
by Chris Shumway


Jul 8 - US-led forces in Iraq are believed by the International Red Cross to be holding more than 100 youths in Iraqi detention facilities, including at the infamous Abu Ghraib prison. Speaking on a German TV news magazine program, Florian Westphal, a Red Cross representative said, "Between January and May of this year we've registered 107 children, during 19 visits in 6 different detention locations" controlled by US troops in Iraq. Westphal suggested that the number of youths detained could be even higher.

Based on the German report, the international organization Save the Children is calling on the Danish government, which has forces in areas where children have been detained, to begin immediately working to gain their release.

According to UNICEF, "The classification of these children as detainees is worrisome because it includes unspecified length of detention without contact to their families pending further proceedings or legal actions."

In addition to the detentions, the German TV program reported that US soldiers have testified that they saw other soldiers sexually abusing and torturing Iraqi youths. Samuel Provance, a US Army Staff Sergeant and Abu Ghraib whistleblower, reported that interrogators pressured a teenage Iraqi girl to undress and soaked a 16-year-old boy with water, made him stand outside in the cold, and then covered him with mud.

© 2004 The NewStandard

[eagler]

1. Can you say

N-A-Z-I ?

[burrowowl]

3. Can you say

W-A-R C-R-I-M-E-S!

[tom_paine]

6. Been saying it since I first noticed the HUGE smilarities...

[KoKo]

2. A bunch of us DU'ers sent the Norwegian report about abuse to many

news outlets, yesterday: CNN/MSNBC/CBS/USA TODAY/WA PO/Lou Dobbs/Wolf Blitzer, and not a peep has been heard from our media.

Shows there's a big lock down on this story. Either it's either ready to blow and being held back for some other information, or they are sitting on it because they've been muzzled.

But, it still is a good idea to keep sending the articles from overseas newspapers to these Media Whore, so that they know WE KNOW in the internet world.

[nosmokes]

4. there is a total lock down, seems like

even when you google you usually end up only a link to the *der speigel* article only.

a friend who does a lot of volunteer work with unicef in the midwest is using her connections to see what she can find out, but she's been getting a sort of run around that she's says is unusual.

this whole thing makes me sick.

i've sent letters to my rep and sens, letters to news outlets is good, too. thanks.

[nosmokes]

5. and from the link in that article:

go to original

International organization calls for releasing children detainees in Iraq
Iraq, Politics, 7/8/2004

The International organization "Save The Children" called on the Danish government to mediate immediately with the coalition forces in Iraq in order to release children detained in the Iraqi jails.

The chairman of the organization's branch in Denmark ( Red Barnette ) Neals Hurdal said that some of those children were exposed to bad treatment and their basic rights were violated.

The call of the organization was made after a German TV station on Monday screened a documentary film talking about more than 100 Iraqi children detained in Iraq.

Hurdal said that his organization heard rumors about this matter since May this year some of it were stated by employees working in its branch in al- Basra to the south of Iraq but without evidences. He said that " the filmed report which was broadcast by the German station proved our doubts." The organization called on the Danish minister of defense Surin Ghad to interfere at the coalition forces in order to prepare the report over the situation of children in the Iraqi jails.

The organization asked the defense minister on May for the first time to investigate of rumors over children detained in Iraq.

But the minister replied that his ministry knows nothing about children detained in the area that falls under the control of the Danish forces in al-Basra, while the organization considered this answer a rejection to take a position towards " the responsibility of the other forces in the coalition." In May UNICEF expressed its concern over information talking about the possibility that children are mistreated in the occupation jails in Iraq.
###
Copyright © 1995-2003 Arabic News.com

[LibbyLou]

7. Pentagon NOT red cross will brief Congress on Red Cross report

They say that's the red cross' wishes. Somehow, I believe that if the Red Cross briefed Congress, it would be a part of public record and if the Pentagon does, it would be classified. This is my understanding but I could be wrong.

Pentagon to brief Congress on Red Cross reports on prisons in Iraq
By Associated Press, 7/8/2004 16:36

WASHINGTON (AP) The Pentagon will brief members of Congress on Friday on confidential reports by the International Committee of the Red Cross regarding conditions at U.S. prisons in Iraq.

Larry Di Rita, chief spokesman for Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld, told reporters the material will be shared with lawmakers in closed meetings. The information will not be released publicly.

''It's something of a stretch of policy and procedures to give them to the Congress,'' Di Rita said.

He said the Red Cross had given its consent to sharing the material with Congress, ''but they do get concerned about expanded exposure to these reports because it affects the way they operate around the world, and we're trying to honor that, so we wouldn't release this to the press.''

The International Committee of the Red Cross is empowered under the 1949 Geneva Conventions to visit prisoners of war and other detainees and make sure the care they are receiving meets international standards.

The Red Cross began visiting detainees of the U.S.-led coalition in Iraq immediately after the March 2003 invasion, and it has complained privately to U.S. authorities about mistreatment of prisoners. But the complaints were made public only when a written Red Cross report was leaked following publication of photographs showing U.S. guards mistreating and humiliating detainees

[nosmokes]

8. welcome to DU, libby lou!

yeah, why wouldn't the red cross brief congress directly? that is weird. couldn't possibly have anything to do with illegally holding children in prison, d'ya think?

and just how filtered is that report gonna be by the time it gets to people that are elected?

[ClassWarrior]

9. Good catch Lou.

And welcome to DU, fellow DUCK.

:yourock:

[ClassWarrior]

10. kick for the kids

:kick:

[ClassWarrior]

11. C'mon, let's get the word out on this, folks...

:kick: