IN THE NEWS - Prisoner Abuse in Iraq

IN THE NEWS - Prisoner Abuse in Iraq
By Cynthia Kirk

Broadcast: Saturday, May 08, 2004

This is Steve Ember with IN THE NEWS, in VOA Special English.

President Bush and Defense¹ Secretary Donald Rumsfeld apologized this week for the treatment of Iraqi prisoners in Baghdad. Mister Bush said he was sorry for the suffering caused to the prisoners and their families by the actions of American soldiers.

The President made the comments Thursday after meeting with King Abdullah of Jordan at the White House. Mister Bush said he told the King that the pictures from the Abu Ghraib prison made Americans sick. In his words, "the wrongdoers will be brought to justice."

The pictures that have appeared in the media include those of prisoners without clothing. Some of the men are tied to each other in sexual positions. People in the United States and around the world have denounced the treatment. In Washington, the House of Representatives this week passed a resolution deploring² the actions of the soldiers involved.

As of now, six members of the Army are facing criminal charges that could result in a military trial. There also are questions about the activities of privately³ employed civilians⁴ used by the Army. Some assist in questioning prisoners for intelligence.

Mister Rumsfeld told Senators Friday that he accepted full responsibility. The Defense Secretary said he was seeking a way to help those prisoners who suffered. He said they suffered at the hands of a few members of the United States armed forces.

Mister Rumsfeld said the Army began an investigation⁵ in January as soon as one soldier reported wrong-doing at the prison. He said he first learned about the investigation when the Army announced it in January. He said the Army then told the world more details in March.

The now former government of Iraq had used the Abu Ghraib prison to torture Iraqis. Senator Edward Kennedy noted⁶ that the International Committee of the Red Cross had earlier compared actions by Americans at the prison to torture. Mister Rumsfeld said the Red Cross report had helped Army generals begin to make what he called corrections at the prison.

 
Graphic⁷ Image
The pictures were included in a secret report written by Army Major General Antonio Taguba. His investigators⁸ seized them from guards at the prison. Mister Rumsfeld said he did not see the pictures, except those already released by the media, until late this week. He said someone gave them to the media illegally. C-B-S television first broadcast some of the pictures last week. The Washington Post newspaper published more on Thursday.

President Bush said his defense secretary should have told him about the pictures. But he said Mister Rumsfeld is an important part of his cabinet and will stay in his job.

Also this week, American officials said twenty-five prisoners had died in Iraq and Afghanistan since two-thousand-two. They said two deaths have been ruled criminal acts by soldiers. Officials say they continue to investigate ten of the deaths.

IN THE NEWS, in VOA Special English, was written by Cynthia Kirk. This is Steve Ember.

1 defense   

n.防御，保卫；[pl.]防务工事；辩护，答辩

参考例句：

• The accused has the right to defense.被告人有权获得辩护。
• The war has impacted the area with military and defense workers.战争使那个地区挤满了军队和防御工程人员。

2 deploring   

v.悲叹，痛惜，强烈反对( deplore的现在分词 )

参考例句：

3 privately   

adv.以私人的身份，悄悄地，私下地

参考例句：

• Some ministers admit privately that unemployment could continue to rise.一些部长私下承认失业率可能继续升高。
• The man privately admits that his motive is profits.那人私下承认他的动机是为了牟利。

4 civilians   

平民，百姓( civilian的名词复数 )； 老百姓

参考例句：

• the bloody massacre of innocent civilians 对无辜平民的血腥屠杀
• At least 300 civilians are unaccounted for after the bombing raids. 遭轰炸袭击之后，至少有300名平民下落不明。

5 investigation   

n.调查，调查研究

参考例句：

• In an investigation,a new fact became known, which told against him.在调查中新发现了一件对他不利的事实。
• He drew the conclusion by building on his own investigation.他根据自己的调查研究作出结论。

6 noted   

adj.著名的，知名的

参考例句：

• The local hotel is noted for its good table.当地的那家酒店以餐食精美而著称。
• Jim is noted for arriving late for work.吉姆上班迟到出了名。

7 graphic   

adj.生动的，形象的，绘画的，文字的，图表的

参考例句：

• The book gave a graphic description of the war.这本书生动地描述了战争的情况。
• Distinguish important text items in lists with graphic icons.用图标来区分重要的文本项。

8 investigators   

n.调查者，审查者( investigator的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• This memo could be the smoking gun that investigators have been looking for. 这份备忘录可能是调查人员一直在寻找的证据。
• The team consisted of six investigators and two secretaries. 这个团队由六个调查人员和两个秘书组成。 来自《简明英汉词典》