Bush calls Iraq abuse 'abhorrent'
VIDEO
President George W Bush has denounced the mistreatment of Iraqi inmates by US soldiers as "abhorrent".
But, in an interview with a US-funded Arabic TV channel, he insisted that the abuse was not typical and that those responsible would be punished
But, in an interview with a US-funded Arabic TV channel, he insisted that the abuse was not typical and that those responsible would be punished.
Earlier, the new US military chief of prisons in Iraq apologised for the "illegal or unauthorised" actions.
Photographs of naked Iraqi prisoners in humiliating poses next to laughing US soldiers have shocked the world.
'Not American'
President Bush told the al-Hurra network: "People in Iraq must understand that I view those practices as abhorrent.
They must also understand that what took place in that prison does not represent the America that I know."
He said that, in democracies, mistakes were made but rejected comparisons of the US treatment of prisoners in Abu Ghraib prison to the practices under the Saddam Hussein regime during which time the jail became notorious for the torture carried out there.
"There will be investigations, people will be brought to justice," he said.
The president revealed that the first time he saw the photographs of the abuse was when they appeared on US television late last month.
But he said US government officials had been investigating allegations of mistreatment since they were first made in January.
He said he had full confidence in the ability of Defence Secretary Donald Rumsfeld and military chiefs to "find the truth".
No apology
President Bush, who is also to be interviewed on the al-Arabiya satellite channel, said that the US was not seeking to impose double standards - criticising other countries for human rights abuses while its troops mistreated prisoners in military jails.
"We will do to ourselves what we expect of others," he said.
President Bush was not asked to apologise during the 10-minute interview for the al-Hurra network.
His National Security Adviser Condoleezza Rice earlier expressed "the United States' deep sorrow over the US troops' abuses against the Iraqi prisoners".
An internal Pentagon report catalogued evidence of "sadistic, blatant and wanton criminal abuses of Iraqi prisoners".
Another graphic photograph apparently of a dead Iraqi man in plastic wrap at the Abu Ghraib prison has also been published by US media.
US military officials say there have been 25 deaths of prisoners in Iraq and Afghanistan since December 2002, two of which have been classified as murder.
Major General Geoffrey Miller, the new US military chief of prisons in Iraq, said some interrogation techniques of Iraqi inmates would be halted and others toned down as a result of the scandal.
He led journalists on a tour of the Abu Ghraib prison outside Baghdad which is at the heart of the new allegations.
"I would like to apologise for our nation and for our military for the small number of soldiers who committed illegal or unauthorised acts here," said Gen Miller, who was previously in charge of the US military detention centre for terror suspects in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.
I personally guarantee that this will not happen again."
As well as the photos showing naked inmates in humiliating poses and being subjected to psychological pressure, some Iraqi prisoners have also claimed they were beaten and stripped by US soldiers.
They spoke of getting limited water, being kept outdoors or put in positions where the body will undergo stress, such as being ordered to stand still for extended periods or keep arms above their head.
Male and female detainees cried out to the journalists shown round Abu Ghraib but interviews were not permitted.
Outside the prison, several hundred people protested and chanted anti-American slogans.
Gen Miller said interrogation techniques such as sleep deprivation could now not be used without the permission of a senior officer.
Putting hoods over prisoners' heads was also now banned, he said.
But he was unapologetic about the use of tough interrogation tactics.
Interrogators are allowed to use "interrogation techniques that increase anxiety," he told journalists.
"There is aggressive conversation but we do not threaten... there is no physical contact between the detainees authorised and the interrogator. We do not use stress positions."
US defence officials say a number of investigations are ongoing into the allegations of abuse.
Criminal charges have been filed against six soldiers, while six senior officers have been reprimanded.
VIDEO
President George W Bush has denounced the mistreatment of Iraqi inmates by US soldiers as "abhorrent".
But, in an interview with a US-funded Arabic TV channel, he insisted that the abuse was not typical and that those responsible would be punished
But, in an interview with a US-funded Arabic TV channel, he insisted that the abuse was not typical and that those responsible would be punished.
Earlier, the new US military chief of prisons in Iraq apologised for the "illegal or unauthorised" actions.
Photographs of naked Iraqi prisoners in humiliating poses next to laughing US soldiers have shocked the world.
'Not American'
President Bush told the al-Hurra network: "People in Iraq must understand that I view those practices as abhorrent.
They must also understand that what took place in that prison does not represent the America that I know."
He said that, in democracies, mistakes were made but rejected comparisons of the US treatment of prisoners in Abu Ghraib prison to the practices under the Saddam Hussein regime during which time the jail became notorious for the torture carried out there.
"There will be investigations, people will be brought to justice," he said.
The president revealed that the first time he saw the photographs of the abuse was when they appeared on US television late last month.
But he said US government officials had been investigating allegations of mistreatment since they were first made in January.
He said he had full confidence in the ability of Defence Secretary Donald Rumsfeld and military chiefs to "find the truth".
No apology
President Bush, who is also to be interviewed on the al-Arabiya satellite channel, said that the US was not seeking to impose double standards - criticising other countries for human rights abuses while its troops mistreated prisoners in military jails.
"We will do to ourselves what we expect of others," he said.
President Bush was not asked to apologise during the 10-minute interview for the al-Hurra network.
His National Security Adviser Condoleezza Rice earlier expressed "the United States' deep sorrow over the US troops' abuses against the Iraqi prisoners".
An internal Pentagon report catalogued evidence of "sadistic, blatant and wanton criminal abuses of Iraqi prisoners".
Another graphic photograph apparently of a dead Iraqi man in plastic wrap at the Abu Ghraib prison has also been published by US media.
US military officials say there have been 25 deaths of prisoners in Iraq and Afghanistan since December 2002, two of which have been classified as murder.
Major General Geoffrey Miller, the new US military chief of prisons in Iraq, said some interrogation techniques of Iraqi inmates would be halted and others toned down as a result of the scandal.
He led journalists on a tour of the Abu Ghraib prison outside Baghdad which is at the heart of the new allegations.
"I would like to apologise for our nation and for our military for the small number of soldiers who committed illegal or unauthorised acts here," said Gen Miller, who was previously in charge of the US military detention centre for terror suspects in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.
I personally guarantee that this will not happen again."
As well as the photos showing naked inmates in humiliating poses and being subjected to psychological pressure, some Iraqi prisoners have also claimed they were beaten and stripped by US soldiers.
They spoke of getting limited water, being kept outdoors or put in positions where the body will undergo stress, such as being ordered to stand still for extended periods or keep arms above their head.
Male and female detainees cried out to the journalists shown round Abu Ghraib but interviews were not permitted.
Outside the prison, several hundred people protested and chanted anti-American slogans.
Gen Miller said interrogation techniques such as sleep deprivation could now not be used without the permission of a senior officer.
Putting hoods over prisoners' heads was also now banned, he said.
But he was unapologetic about the use of tough interrogation tactics.
Interrogators are allowed to use "interrogation techniques that increase anxiety," he told journalists.
"There is aggressive conversation but we do not threaten... there is no physical contact between the detainees authorised and the interrogator. We do not use stress positions."
US defence officials say a number of investigations are ongoing into the allegations of abuse.
Criminal charges have been filed against six soldiers, while six senior officers have been reprimanded.
