A US army reservist who pleaded guilty to five charges of abusing prisoners at Abu Ghraib jail near Baghdad has been sentenced to eight years in prison.
Sgt Ivan Frederick admitted conspiracy, dereliction of duty, maltreatment, assault and committing an indecent act.
The judge ordered a reduction in rank to private, a forfeiture of pay and a dishonourable discharge from the army.
Sgt Frederick, 38, the highest-ranking soldier found guilty of abuse, admitted forcing detainees to masturbate.
The prosecutor, Major Michael Holley, told the court it had been a simple case of right and wrong.
"He's an adult and capable of telling, as we learned, the difference between right and wrong," he told the court.
"How much training do you need to learn that it's wrong to force a man to masturbate?"
But Frederick's lawyer, Gary Myers, said he would appeal against the "excessive" sentence.
"Punish him, yes. But please try to understand the defence's point of view that there is corporate responsibility," he said.
"We discovered that he has no abhorrent tendencies."
Two other reservists, Sgt Javal Davis and Specialist Charles Graner, also face hearings this week.
In total, seven military police and an intelligence officer have been charged in connection with the abuse.
'Stripped naked'
Sgt Frederick, a military policeman and a prison officer at a state jail in Virginia, told the court he knew what he was doing.
"I was wrong about what I did and I shouldn't have done it," he said.
"I knew it was wrong at the time because I knew it was a form of abuse."
He described life inside the prison, saying prisoners were stripped naked, dressed in women's underwear and otherwise physically and mentally abused.
He admitted forcing a group of detainees to masturbate while other soldiers watched and took pictures, and described watching a fellow soldier jumping on prisoners' hands and feet.
He said he could have stopped the abuse but did not, and instead punched one prisoner who had apparently attacked a female soldier. The prisoner needed resuscitation.
'Humiliation'
At Sgt Frederick's hearing, an Iraqi man took the stand and said that Sgt Frederick had made him masturbate in front of the other prisoners.
"I was crying. I wanted to kill myself," he said.
He said he and other prisoners then had to sleep naked with bags on their heads in cells flooded with water, adding that he still felt humiliated by the ordeal.
Sgt Frederick has reportedly agreed a deal with prosecutors to plead guilty to some charges and be acquitted on others.
The US says it has made efforts to improve conditions at the prison since the abuses came to light.
More than 2,000 people are still being held there indefinitely without charge.
Despite questions about how high-up the chain of command these abuses were sanctioned, no senior army officials outside the prison have been held responsible and there have been no high-level resignations.
Sgt Ivan Frederick admitted conspiracy, dereliction of duty, maltreatment, assault and committing an indecent act.
The judge ordered a reduction in rank to private, a forfeiture of pay and a dishonourable discharge from the army.
Sgt Frederick, 38, the highest-ranking soldier found guilty of abuse, admitted forcing detainees to masturbate.
The prosecutor, Major Michael Holley, told the court it had been a simple case of right and wrong.
"He's an adult and capable of telling, as we learned, the difference between right and wrong," he told the court.
"How much training do you need to learn that it's wrong to force a man to masturbate?"
But Frederick's lawyer, Gary Myers, said he would appeal against the "excessive" sentence.
"Punish him, yes. But please try to understand the defence's point of view that there is corporate responsibility," he said.
"We discovered that he has no abhorrent tendencies."
Two other reservists, Sgt Javal Davis and Specialist Charles Graner, also face hearings this week.
In total, seven military police and an intelligence officer have been charged in connection with the abuse.
'Stripped naked'
Sgt Frederick, a military policeman and a prison officer at a state jail in Virginia, told the court he knew what he was doing.
"I was wrong about what I did and I shouldn't have done it," he said.
"I knew it was wrong at the time because I knew it was a form of abuse."
He described life inside the prison, saying prisoners were stripped naked, dressed in women's underwear and otherwise physically and mentally abused.
He admitted forcing a group of detainees to masturbate while other soldiers watched and took pictures, and described watching a fellow soldier jumping on prisoners' hands and feet.
He said he could have stopped the abuse but did not, and instead punched one prisoner who had apparently attacked a female soldier. The prisoner needed resuscitation.
'Humiliation'
At Sgt Frederick's hearing, an Iraqi man took the stand and said that Sgt Frederick had made him masturbate in front of the other prisoners.
"I was crying. I wanted to kill myself," he said.
He said he and other prisoners then had to sleep naked with bags on their heads in cells flooded with water, adding that he still felt humiliated by the ordeal.
Sgt Frederick has reportedly agreed a deal with prosecutors to plead guilty to some charges and be acquitted on others.
The US says it has made efforts to improve conditions at the prison since the abuses came to light.
More than 2,000 people are still being held there indefinitely without charge.
Despite questions about how high-up the chain of command these abuses were sanctioned, no senior army officials outside the prison have been held responsible and there have been no high-level resignations.