A new Army report concludes that military detention operations in Iraq and Afghanistan suffered from poor training, haphazard organization and outmoded policies, but that these flaws did not directly contribute to the abuses at Abu Ghraib prison.
The report, by Lt. Gen. Paul T. Mikolashek, the Army inspector general, found no evidence that any systemic problems caused the abuses. Instead, his five-month inquiry blamed the "unauthorized actions taken by a few individuals, coupled with the failure of a few leaders to provide adequate monitoring, supervision and leadership over those soldiers."
NY Times article
The report, by Lt. Gen. Paul T. Mikolashek, the Army inspector general, found no evidence that any systemic problems caused the abuses. Instead, his five-month inquiry blamed the "unauthorized actions taken by a few individuals, coupled with the failure of a few leaders to provide adequate monitoring, supervision and leadership over those soldiers."
See? Neat and tidy. A few heads will roll. Maybe the videos of the boys being raped and screaming will be kept under wraps at least until after November. Rumsfiend will lay low. Military courts will quietly dismiss and fine a few soldiers and one or two Generals (my bet is Karpinski), and Americans will gladly forget about it.
Its findings contradict those of an earlier Army inquiry, by Maj. Gen. Antonio Taguba, who concluded military police at Abu Ghraib conducted "systemic and illegal abuse of detainees." A report by the International Committee of the Red Cross in February found that "methods of ill treatment" were "used in a systematic way" by the United States military in Iraq.
Never mind. The Army has found something different.
Isn't it nice that we let the Army investigate itself and have the final word? It's so much cleaner that way.
Some Democrats virtually accused General Mikolashek of a whitewash. "General, I just think the premise of your report that there's been no systemic problems is undercut by the fact that you didn't look at some systematic problems," Senator Jack Reed, a Rhode Island Democrat, noting that the inquiry did not examine the military's practice of keeping high-value detainees off Abu Ghraib's rolls.
Republicans rushed to defend the Army, and the Pentagon's longstanding argument that a handful of rogue jailers were responsible for the misconduct at Abu Ghraib. "We should not overreact," said Senator Pete Sessions, an Alabama Republican. "We want our soldiers, right up to the limit of what they legally can do, to obtain good intelligence, to help save lives."
Republicans rushed to defend the Army, and the Pentagon's longstanding argument that a handful of rogue jailers were responsible for the misconduct at Abu Ghraib. "We should not overreact," said Senator Pete Sessions, an Alabama Republican. "We want our soldiers, right up to the limit of what they legally can do, to obtain good intelligence, to help save lives."
Two Americas.
Army investigators announced 94 cases of confirmed or alleged prisoner abuse in Iraq and Afghanistan a number higher than previous estimates in a report Thursday that concluded no systemic failures were at fault.
ABC News article
General Mikolashek uses George Bush's dictionary.
The acting Army secretary and its top general said they took responsibility for the abuses while insisting that they were the misconduct of enlisted soldiers or lower-ranking officers and not sanctioned by Army leadership.
"These actions, while regrettable, are aberrations," said Acting Army Secretary Les Brownlee. "The Army is responsible for their acts. As the senior civilian leader in the Army, I accept this responsibility."
"These actions, while regrettable, are aberrations," said Acting Army Secretary Les Brownlee. "The Army is responsible for their acts. As the senior civilian leader in the Army, I accept this responsibility."
So do you think Les will be dismissed post-haste?
Army Chief of Staff Gen. Peter Schoomaker said mistakes were understandable, though not excusable. Troops must be trained to contain their anger at prisoners who had been trying to kill them, he said.
What an ass. Pretending not to appeal to the Rush Limbaugh in you as he said it, I imagine.
And it's horseshit anyway. They rounded up thousands of civilians from day 1 who weren't trying to do anything but stay out of the way.
Commanding officers sometimes failed to intervene and stop abuses, said Lt. Gen. Paul Mikolashek, the Army's inspector general.
Mikolashek's review concluded that the rules were poorly communicated to troops and enforced inconsistently. He said the Army needed to do a better job of training and overseeing troops who guard and interrogate prisoners.
Mikolashek's review concluded that the rules were poorly communicated to troops and enforced inconsistently. He said the Army needed to do a better job of training and overseeing troops who guard and interrogate prisoners.
But it's not systemic, mind you.
Sen. John Warner, the Republican chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, who had been pressing for the results of the inspector general report for several weeks, called the last-minute hearing Thursday before Congress leaves for a summer hiatus.
Vacation! We're outa here.
....but hey, do what you want....you will anyway.
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