Gorilla’s Guides

The Day In Quotes:

• 35 year old man on the experience of being tortured by British troops in Basrah:

  “The main problem is that my reputation is ruined. The people in our area, when they hear I have been arrested by the British Army, assumed I had been abused by British soldiers. People associate the British Army with sexual abuse.” 

  Source: Britain faces payout shame as hundreds of detainees claim soldiers abused them – Times Online:

• Qassim al-Abbudi, an official with the Independent High Electoral Commission (IHEC), to reporters:

  "We will count 600 boxes today,"

  Source: Al Arabiya.net | Middle East News | Baghdad begins vote recount requested by PM:  

Human Rights:

Reporters Sans Frontières – Forty predators of press freedom:

In Iraq, journalists who do their job face real dangers from the conflicts that keep erupting but the situation is slowly improving and the violence is affecting the general population more than journalists in particular. That is why Reporters Without Borders has withdrawn Islamist groups from the ranks of the predators.

Britain faces payout shame as hundreds of detainees claim soldiers abused them – Times Online:

The cash-strapped Ministry of Defence faces the prospect of further compensation payouts as hundreds of Iraqis held in British custody file complaints of abuse, described to The Times by former detainees.

snip

The family of Baha Musa, an Iraqi who died in British custody in 2003, shared a £2.83 million MoD settlement with nine others. An inquiry into his death saw evidence suggesting that the illegal treatment of prisoners, such as hooding and sleep deprivation, was widespread.

Substantial out-of-court settlements have also been reached with nine men who made allegations of violence and sexual abuse at the hands of British soldiers in 2003 at a base known as Camp Breadbasket.

The MoD admitted in 2008 that Iraqis were unlawfully assaulted at the base in Basra.
Leigh Day solicitors, who represented the nine men, said that a further 14 have since come forward. The law firm also represents about 100 other Iraqi citizens in claims against the MoD for alleged maltreatment by British forces, mainly relating to arrest and detention. “Fresh allegations continue to come forward, so the number of cases will undoubtedly rise,” a spokesman for the firm said.

snip

He said: “The main problem is that my reputation is ruined. The people in our area, when they hear I have been arrested by the British Army, assumed I had been abused by British soldiers. People associate the British Army with sexual abuse.”

Military court hears Graner’s Abu Ghraib appeal | HamptonRoads.com | PilotOnline.com:

The U.S. military’s highest court is considering whether a "Catch-22" prevented the alleged ringleader of detainee abuses at Abu Ghraib prison in Iraq from getting a fair trial in 2005.

In arguments today in Washington, Army Spc. Charles Graner’s lawyer told the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Armed Forces that the defense was wrongly denied access to classified documents indicating that some of the harsh treatment of detainees reflected "enhanced interrogation techniques" approved by Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld.

One of the five justices questioned whether the secret nature of the documents made it impossible for the defense to request specific memos — a situation he called a Catch-22.

The court is expected to rule by August on Graner’s request for a new trial.

SEAL accused of assault in Iraq goes to trial in Norfolk | HamptonRoads.com | PilotOnline.com:

The last of three U.S. Navy SEALs to face court-martial in connection with the alleged abuse of a suspected terrorist in Iraq is scheduled to stand trial this week at Norfolk Naval Station.

snip

The SEAL who will stand trial beginning today, Petty Officer 2nd Class Matthew McCabe, is the only one who is accused of physically harming Abed. The charges against him include assault for allegedly punching Abed in the midsection; dereliction of duty for not protecting Abed; and making a false statement to an investigator who later interviewed him about the matter.

Military defends prosecution of SEAL – Washington Times:

The U.S. military is issuing an extensive defense of its decision to prosecute three Navy SEALs on charges of abusing a terrorism suspect they had captured in Iraq, after two of the servicemen were found not guilty during courts-martial.

Politics and Security

Monday: 6 Iraqis Killed, 16 Wounded — Antiwar.com:

At least six Iraqis were killed and 16 more were wounded as a manual recount of ballots begin today in Baghdad. The contentious recount was not without its own controversy as the prime minister’s party found fault with the procedures that could help them win more seats in the new parliament.

كونا : Three explosions kill three Iraqis, injured 13 – الدفاع والأمن – 03/05/2010:

BAGHDAD, May 3 (KUNA) — Three Iraqi civilians wer killed and 13 others injured by explosions at Al-Zafarania, New Baghdad and Al-Kesra, Iraqi military sources said on Monday.
The first explosion took place near Al-Kbaisi cafe at the main road of Al-Zafarania town. The booby-trapped car blast resulted in the wounding of four Iraqis, as well as the destruction of the cafe.
The second explosion occured in Al-Darwesh Bakery in New Baghdad resulted in the death of one Iraqi civilian and the injurey of six others.
At Al-Kesra town, northern Baghdad, an explosive device attached to a parked car killed two civilians, and injured three others.

Three killed in two separate attacks in Iraq – Monsters and Critics:

An unidentified group of gunmen attacked two employees of the court of first instance in Toz, just south of the city Kirkuk, leaving one dead and the other injured.

In a separate incident, an Iraqi soldier and a police officer were killed while walking along a road when a remotely controlled bomb exploded in a parked car in the province of Salah al-Din, security forces said.

كونا : Iraqi electoral commission: manual re-counting starts officially in Baghdad – الشؤون السياسية – 03/05/2010:

The Independent High Electoral Commission (IHEC) announced launch of the manual re-counting and sorting of ballots at Al-Rasheed Hotel in Baghdad, IHEC Spokesman Qassim Al-Abodi said on Monday.

It is expected that recount and sorting of 600 ballot stations would be done today and that 800 ballot boxes a day would be counted within the upcoming few days, he told reporters.

Recount process is expected to last between 11 to 15 days, he said.

Al-Maliki’s coalition calls for halt to vote recount (1st Lead) – Monsters and Critics

Baghdad – Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki’s State of law Coalition Monday called for halting the recount of votes cast in Baghdad, saying ‘it does not comply with the court’s decision’.

Iraq’s Independent High Electoral Commission started earlier on Monday recounting votes of the March parliamentary elections in the capital, as ordered by a court last month.

The coalition said it filed a new complaint to the court to say that the ‘commission insists that the results would not reflect the true will of the voters.’

snip

Al-Shahristani said that the process should have started by comparing the number of voters with the number of votes, and if they match, then they would start the manual recount.

Iraq locked in two-man power struggle after vote : The Peninsula On-line: Qatar:

BAGHDAD: Two months after a general election that produced no outright winner, Iraq has become locked in a battle between two men fighting for power that threatens its fragile security and hopes for stability.

Whether or not Shia Prime Minister Nouri Al Maliki and ex-Prime Minister Iyad Allawi are putting personal ambition ahead of the nation’s good, their battle could stoke sectarian tensions and invite foreign interference, analysts say. “The battle in many ways boils down to the personal antipathy between the two, something which is now threatening political stability,” IHS Global Insight Middle East analyst Gala Riani said.

Election Victories Help Kurds in Iraq Push for More Sovereignty – NYTimes.com:

As the deadlock in Baghdad has deepened with the recent disqualification of some winning Sunni candidates and the coming vote recount in the capital, important bloc leaders like the Kurdish president, Massoud Barzani, have been heavily courted for support in forming coalitions.

But no one has been more openly aggressive in the jockeying for position than Mr. Barzani, and he is being closely watched because the issues he seeks to influence all have stark ramifications for Iraq’s stability. In particular, his demands for a federalist approach to governing Iraq — a weakened national government and stronger regional control — have revived fears that his Iraqi Kurdistan region may eventually try to secede.

An unlikely Iraqi leader emerges – latimes.com:

Among all the candidates being touted for the prime minister’s job in the next Iraqi government, one stands out for his near-total lack of political experience.

snip

But Sadr’s heritage puts him in the ranks of aristocracy, at least by Iraqi Shiite Muslim standards. He is the only son of the revered Grand Ayatollah Mohammed Baqir Sadr, who was executed by Saddam Hussein in 1980 and whose portrait looms large on billboards in almost every Shiite community across the country. And he is a second cousin and brother-in-law of the radical cleric Muqtada Sadr, who commands a vast following among poor Shiites.

Jaafar Sadr’s pedigree alone was enough to ensure that when he ran from Baghdad on Prime Minister Nouri Maliki’s State of Law list, he received the slate’s most votes after Maliki — albeit with a huge gulf. That secured him a seat in parliament. He also came in second in an advisory referendum Muqtada Sadr supporters held on the prime minister’s post, and he was named one of their two candidates for the job.

Society and Economy:

Scania is back in Iraq | Business Wire:

Scania has a presence in Iraq again, including both production and sales. Trucks ordered by government customers are being assembled locally there, while an independent distributor is supplying the private sector market with imported vehicles. This distributor is also responsible for the reconstruction of Scania’s sales and service network in the country.

“If the situation in Iraq continues to stabilise, within a few years the country can regain its position as Scania’s most important market in the Middle East,” says Martin Lundstedt, Executive Vice President and responsible for the company’s sales and marketing.

In the early 1980s, Iraq was one of Scania’s largest markets. At the peak, sales totalled 3,900 trucks in one year (1981).

Late in 2009, Iraq’s State Company for Automotive Industry (SCAI) began production of the first of 500 trucks ordered under the terms of an agreement between Scania and Iraq’s Ministry of Industry & Minerals. Production is taking place at the government’s Iskandariyah industrial complex south of Baghdad.

“Creating jobs in the country’s industry has been an important aspect of the agreement between Scania and the Iraqi government,” Lundstedt says.

Today the SCAI facility in Iskandariyah employs about 300 people in its Scania operations, which not only includes final assembly of truck chassis but also bodywork for delivery of ready-to-drive trucks.

So far, SCAI has delivered some 150 fully equipped trucks to various public sector customers, for example tank trucks to the Ministry of Water Protection and Supply.

Dissent Magazine | Seven Years–And There’s Still No Labor Law in Iraq:

Seven years since the invasion and Iraq still does not have a labor law. Workers in the public sector are denied the right to organise and join trade unions and collective bargaining is almost impossible. It’s a disgrace. The good news that the International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC) has set up an Iraqi Labour Campaign: For a Fair and Just Labour Law.  For a short history of the Iraqi unions before and after the invasion order this rather splendid pamphlet from the TUC.

Gulf Times – Qatar’s top-selling English daily newspaper – Qatar:

The Iraqi Cultural Week got under way on Saturday as part of the ‘Doha, Capital of Arab Culture 2010’ celebrations. The week, featuring exhibitions and folk performances, will run until Wednesday at the Qatar National Theatre.

Commentary and Analysis

Intimidating the Iraqis Asharq Alawsat Newspaper (English):

It is not strange for al-Maliki to try to hold onto his position – for this is the case with most Arab rulers – but by doing so he is threatening the political process and putting all of Iraq in danger. Al-Maliki is today trying to scare the Iraqis with the prospect of UN interference; however the UN is the chief election monitor and observer, and Iraq remains under the purview of Chapter VII of the UN Chapter which gives the UN Security Council the final say in this matter. Al-Maliki is right that there is no need to involve the UN, but the problem is that by trying to change the announced election results he has caused the elector bloc that originally won the most number of seats to call for help from the authorities in charge of supervising the elections. Al-Maliki has also called for a recount without first guaranteeing that this will take place in a transparent atmosphere and under the supervision of a party that is acceptable to all electoral blocs, not just his own. We do not understand what has afflicted al-Maliki to cause him to raise all of these obstacles, especially as there is no clear victor that would be able to form a government on their own, and al-Maliki or Allawi or anybody else cannot form a government or become Prime Minister without first allying with other parties.

Secret operation ‘reporting only to London’ deprived prisoners of sleep, documents show

Fresh evidence has emerged that British military intelligence ran a secret operation in Iraq which authorised degrading and unlawful treatment of prisoners. Documents reveal that prisoners were kept hooded for long periods in intense heat and deprived of sleep by defence intelligence officers. They also reveal that officers running the operation claimed to be answerable only "directly to London".

The revelations will further embarrass the British government, which last month was forced to release documents showing it knew that UK resident and terror suspect Binyam Mohamed had been tortured in Pakistan.

The latest documents emerged during the inquiry into Baha Mousa, an Iraqi hotel worker beaten to death while in the custody of British troops in September 2003. The inquiry is looking into how interrogation techniques banned by the Government in 1972 and considered torture and degrading treatment were used again in Iraq.

Lawyers believe the new evidence supports suspicions that an intelligence unit – the Joint Forward Interrogation Team (JFIT) which operated in Iraq – used illegal "coercive techniques" and was not answerable to military commanders in Iraq, despite official denials it operated independently.

In a statement to the inquiry, Colonel Christopher Vernon said he raised concerns after seeing 30 to 40 prisoners in a kneeling position with sacks over their heads. He said those in charge said they were from the Defence and Intelligence Security Centre, based at Chicksands, Bedfordshire, the British Army’s intelligence HQ.

He was informed that "they were an independent unit and reported directly to their chain of command in London". Hooding was "accepted practice" and would continue, he was told. "They reiterated the point they were an independent unit and did not come under the command of the GOC1 (UK) Armed Div (the Iraq command)," he said. Asked by the inquiry last week whether there was "some sort of feeling generally in the Army the intelligence people were slightly on their own and running their own show", Col Vernon replied: "I think you could say that."

In a second statement, Colonel David Frend, a British Army legal adviser in Iraq, said he was told by a senior military intelligence officer in London that "there was a legitimate reason for it [hooding], they had always done it and they would like to continue to do it." Col Frend said: "My recollection is that he said that they – ie those at JFIT – had been trained to hood. My understanding from the conversation was simply the use of hessian sandbags as hoods were something that had been taught to members of the JFIT at some point prior to deployment [to Iraq] and that it was not a unilateral act by them."

In a further email disclosed by the inquiry this week, Major Gavin Davies, a member of the Army’s legal team, wrote in March 2003: "I have just spoken to S002 [code for an army intelligence officer in Iraq] about the subject of placing [prisoners] in hoods in the UK facility." He goes on to say that he was told that hooding is only until "high value" prisoners can be interviewed, and the length of hooding can last from an hour to 24 hours. The only other restriction, he wrote, "is that they may not sleep". Sleep deprivation is considered torture.

Chicksands has always denied that it trained soldiers to use hoods, claiming that there may have been some confusion with its "conduct after capture" training programme.

However, a further email from a military legal officer based at Permanent Joint Headquarters in Northwood, also published last week, stated: "I have heard that Chicksands have denied teaching hooding and suggested that there may be confusion in the minds of those who have completed the conduct after capture course during which students are hooded. I find this implausible. The people I have spoken to are not stupid. It seems to me more likely that hooding is taught but for actions immediately on capture or for prisoner handling."

In November, the human rights lawyer Phil Shiner, who represents Baha Mousa's family and forced the public inquiry, lodged a further 14 cases of abuse, naming JFIT. This is the first time that evidence to support the claims from the British military has emerged. There are now 47 claims of abuse lodged against the Government.

Yesterday Mr Shiner said: "It's been established that JFIT were a separate compound and their personnel were not accountable to a military chain of command. There is a mass of evidence from this and other cases which shows JFIT used coercive interrogation techniques – forbidden under law – as standard operating procedure. We need an independent inquiry to examine who was responsible."

A MoD spokesman declined to comment while the inquiry was ongoing.

British military intelligence 'ran renegade torture unit in Iraq' - Home News, UK - The Independent