Guards Describe Guantanamo Prisoner Abuse

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Courtesy Of: Reuters News

By Will Dunham

Sat Oct 7, 2006

http://today.reuters.com

Washington--Guantanamo guards described physically and mentally abusing detainees, including slamming one's head into a cell door and denying them privileges merely to anger them, a U.S. Marine said in a document made public on Friday.

"Examples of this abuse included hitting detainees, denying them water, and removal of privileges for no reason," the Marine Corps Sergeant stated in a sworn affadavit sent to the Pentagon's inspector general's office for investigation.

The affadavit, signed on Wednesday, was provided by lawyers representing some of the approximately 455 foreign terrorism suspects held at the U.S. Naval Base at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. It represents the latest in a series of allegations of abuse of of Guantanamo detainees by U.S. personnel.

...A Navy sailor named Bo told of beating detainees. "One such story Bo told involved him taking a detainee by the head and hitting the detainee's head into the cell door," the sergeant wrote, adding that Bo stated that others at Guantanamo knew of his actions and did not punish him.

A guard named Steven said that even when the conduct of detainees was good, guards would take away personal items. "He said they d this to anger detainees so they can punish them when they object or complain."

The affadavit said about five other guards talking at the bar admitted to hitting detainees, including punching them in the face. "From the whole conversation, I understood that striking detainees was a common practice. Everyone in the group laughed at the others' stories of beating detainees."

...The fact that members of the U.S. Navy can sit around at a bar and laugh about beating detainees for no reason is outrageous. We're one step away from Abu Ghraib (Iraq prison abuse scandal) or possibly worse," Dixon said.