GUEST 02 May 04 - 12:09 PM

"As others have noted, the scandal seems to still be widening. It now encompasses charges against British troops, and the American general who oversaw the prisons in Iraq has been relieved of duty and is now back in the States--and talking to the press. She says that the CIA and Army military intelligence controlled everything going in in this particular cell block, including illegally blocking access to the prisoners in question by the Red Cross, and the general herself."

No serving member of the armed forces (of the UK, to my certain knowledge) is under any obligation to carry out an order that they believe to be illegal. I say, to my certain knowledge, because it is a right that, in the time in served in the forces, I exercised on two occasions, and on both occasions my actions were upheld.

If what she has reported, in your quote above Guest, is correct, then it is only correct that she be relieved of her command as the Officer Commanding the Abu Ghraib prison, pending full investigation and possible Court Martial Proceedings and possible criminal charges. In her position, I would have ordered my men to arrest and detain, by force, if necessary, those members of the CIA and Military Intelligence operating within a facility under my command. Under no circumstances whatsoever would I have accepted restriction of access, or movement in any area that I was responsible for.

MGOH, earlier on in the thread, drew attention to the fact that the members of the US forces involved seemed untroubled about their ability to be indentified in the photographs published so far, whereas the "UK Soldiers" where a bit more circumspect about the possibility of identification. MGOH offered a possible explanation for this, there now appears to be another - that the photgraphs are faked. BBC's defence consultant, noted a number of discrepancies, uniforms, webbing, rifles, transport, complete absence of unit identification and the "pristine condition" of the subject being "interrogated". I think I will just wait to find out what comes out of the investigation, either way, it will make no difference, the damage has been done. It is also not the first accusation of mistreatment of prisoners by UK forces in Iraq. Remember Col. Collins? The allegations were proved false and he was completely exhonerated, he sued those scions of the "British Media" who were so prepared to race to print. It was an out of Court Settlement for a substantial, but undisclosed, sum. I believe that Col. Collins has since retired from from the Army (he was due to) I trust he enjoys his retirement.

El Greko, surprised to see that you advocate and fully condone collective punishment and public humiliation - just hope that none of your family ever put a foot wrong.