The New Standard picks up the case:
On May 4, [2003], we published a story about Sadiq Zoman, an Iraqi who US troops abducted from his home in Kirkuk and, one month later, dropped off at a Tikrit hospital in a "persistent vegetative state," his body exhibiting telltale signs of torture. We told the story of Mr. Zoman's family -- nine daughters and a wife who have sold every last possession to pay for his care as he lies unresponsive and helpless.
...Mr. Zoman's case is unlike most other cases involving alleged or known torture of Iraqis by US personnel. On one hand, Zoman survived his ordeal in US custody. On the other, he cannot tell his story, because he cannot speak. He was not murdered, yet the details of his treatment are a mystery.
We told Major Aberle about the documentation and testimony gathered by The NewStandard, which strongly suggests Mr. Zoman underwent severe torture, but she did not seem interested. We told her about the statements we have from numerous physicians who say, based on the US's own medical records on the case, Mr. Zoman was mistreated in American care.
...Iraqi doctors who treated Zoman shortly after his release confirmed there were point burns on his feet and hands, lash marks on his back, bruises on his arms and a blunt force injury to the back of his head. Video stills obtained from an Aljazeera TV crew that visited Zoman at the time depict many of these injuries.
...What's more, men who were held with Sadiq Zoman told Dahr Jamail that guards at the facilities where they were detained regularly tortured many of the prisoners. They said that one night Mr. Zoman was taken away, and thereafter guards would only tell them that Zoman had died.
Even the New York Times picked up on our May 4 article and described the Zoman family's ordeal in a feature story on torture victims and their relatives.
Still, the United States Army will not answer most of our questions on the matter.
...Another report, uncovered by Miles Moffeit at the Denver Post, showed that the military has blamed murders on heart attacks -- just like the heart attack it appears Sadiq Zoman did not have -- and other "natural causes." It claimed one terminal head injury, probably sustained during a beating, was a result of the inmate having fallen out of bed -- later disproved by an autopsy. During an intitial interview, Major Aberle was quick to speculate that Mr. Zoman's head injury was the result of a fall.
When we started The NewStandard we envisioned our readership as active participants in the world around them -- engaged with the news, instead of passively consuming it. From your letters and phone calls, we know you are that readership. As we strive to provide you with daily news from a perspective you can relate to, we need your help. Gathering the news need not be reserved for professionals. Sometimes a story can only be acquired through collective action.
We are asking you, and everyone you know, to take a few minutes to help us demand answers from the US military. With your help maybe we can unravel a mystery and help ten impoverished Iraqi women gain some peace of mind.
Two Ways You Can Help
...Mr. Zoman's case is unlike most other cases involving alleged or known torture of Iraqis by US personnel. On one hand, Zoman survived his ordeal in US custody. On the other, he cannot tell his story, because he cannot speak. He was not murdered, yet the details of his treatment are a mystery.
We told Major Aberle about the documentation and testimony gathered by The NewStandard, which strongly suggests Mr. Zoman underwent severe torture, but she did not seem interested. We told her about the statements we have from numerous physicians who say, based on the US's own medical records on the case, Mr. Zoman was mistreated in American care.
...Iraqi doctors who treated Zoman shortly after his release confirmed there were point burns on his feet and hands, lash marks on his back, bruises on his arms and a blunt force injury to the back of his head. Video stills obtained from an Aljazeera TV crew that visited Zoman at the time depict many of these injuries.
...What's more, men who were held with Sadiq Zoman told Dahr Jamail that guards at the facilities where they were detained regularly tortured many of the prisoners. They said that one night Mr. Zoman was taken away, and thereafter guards would only tell them that Zoman had died.
Even the New York Times picked up on our May 4 article and described the Zoman family's ordeal in a feature story on torture victims and their relatives.
Still, the United States Army will not answer most of our questions on the matter.
...Another report, uncovered by Miles Moffeit at the Denver Post, showed that the military has blamed murders on heart attacks -- just like the heart attack it appears Sadiq Zoman did not have -- and other "natural causes." It claimed one terminal head injury, probably sustained during a beating, was a result of the inmate having fallen out of bed -- later disproved by an autopsy. During an intitial interview, Major Aberle was quick to speculate that Mr. Zoman's head injury was the result of a fall.
When we started The NewStandard we envisioned our readership as active participants in the world around them -- engaged with the news, instead of passively consuming it. From your letters and phone calls, we know you are that readership. As we strive to provide you with daily news from a perspective you can relate to, we need your help. Gathering the news need not be reserved for professionals. Sometimes a story can only be acquired through collective action.
We are asking you, and everyone you know, to take a few minutes to help us demand answers from the US military. With your help maybe we can unravel a mystery and help ten impoverished Iraqi women gain some peace of mind.
Two Ways You Can Help
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