Journalist, tortured at Abu Ghraib, sues CACI mercenary corporation

Posted on May 6, 2014 by petrel41

Democracy Now! in the USA writes about this video, with transcript there:

Imprisoned Al Jazeera Journalist Details Abu Ghraib Torture & Why He’s Suing U.S. Contractor CACI

Ten years after the first publication of photos from inside the Abu Ghraib prison in Iraq, we speak to Al Jazeera journalist Salah Hassan about his torture by U.S. forces inside the facility.

To date, no high-ranking U.S. official has been held accountable for the torture at Abu Ghraib, but Hassan and other former prisoners are attempting to sue one of the private companies, CACI International, that helped run the prison. “Throughout my detainment in the solitary cells, there was an interrogation every two or three days,” Hassan says. “During these interrogations, we were subjected to many psychological and physical torture methods. One of these methods was that you are kept naked, handcuffed, the hood on your head, then they would bring a big dog. You hear the panting and barking of the dog very close to your face.”

Transcript

This is a rush transcript. Copy may not be in its final form.

Hersh: Children sodomized at Abu Ghraib, on tape: here.

Abu Ghraib torture by mercenary corporations

Posted on January 9, 2013 by petrel41

This video says about itself:

SBS Dateline documentary about the Abu Ghraib prison and torture. This is the information/video the US government does not want you to see.

From the BBC:

9 January 2013 Last updated at 02:57 GMT

Ex-Abu Ghraib inmates get $5m settlement from US firm

A defence contractor whose subsidiary was accused of conspiring to torture Abu Ghraib prisoners has settled with former inmates for $5m (£3m).

US firm Engility Holdings paid 71 people held at Abu Ghraib, Baghdad, and other US-run prisons, on behalf of L-3 Services, according to a legal filing found by the Associated Press.

L-3 provided translators to the US military in post-war Iraq.

Images of abuse at Abu Ghraib in 2004 sparked international outage.

Another contractor which provided interrogators to the US military, CACI, is expected to go to trial over similar allegations.

The US government is immune from lawsuits stemming from combat actions by the military in time of war, but courts are still establishing whether independent firms operating in war zones should have the same legal immunity.

The Engility settlement marks the first successful effort by lawyers for former Iraqi prisoners against defence contractors in lawsuits alleging torture.

A lawyer for the ex-detainees, Baher Azmy told the BBC’s Newsday programme that each of the 71 Iraqis received a portion of the settlement for suffering “a vast and grim arsenal of torture and abuse”.

He did not say how the money was distributed, and said there was an agreement to keep details of the settlement confidential.

Mr Azmy, legal director at the Center for Constitutional Rights, said that although some soldiers were court-martialled for their role in abuses at Abu Ghraib, the US Army had not sought to prosecute private contractors.

“This litigation attempts to close that gap in accountability and hold corporations – who, by the way, made millions and millions of dollars from US government work in Iraq – accountable, and give back some of those extravagant profits to individuals they harmed,” said Mr Azmy.

Engility Holdings said it did not comment on legal matters.

Abu Ghraib came to world attention after the release in 2004 of photographs showing the physical, sexual and psychological abuse of Iraqi prisoners by US guards.

The images showed prisoners facing dogs, being stripped naked and wired up as if being subjected to electric shocks and became a turning point of the Iraq war.

Eleven soldiers were convicted of breaking military laws, but many received sentences of a just a few years. The last remaining soldier in prison convicted in the case was released in August 2011.

Iraqis awarded $5m over Abu Ghraib abuse (aljazeera.com)
U.S. defense contractor pays Iraqis $5mn over Abu Ghraib abuse (dailystar.com.lb)

Scottish petition against Abu Ghraib torture corporation CACI

Posted on September 23, 2008 by petrel41

This is a video from CNN in the USA about torture in Abu Ghraib.

From Scotland Against Criminalising Communities:

An ethical Scottish census in 2011

…

To: The Scottish Government

We, the undersigned, are gravely concerned that CACI Ltd, a wholly-owned UK subsidiary of a company that has been involved in interrogating prisoners at Abu Ghraib Prison in Iraq, has been awarded a Scottish Census 2011 contract for census printing and data capture services (Sunday Herald, 27th July 2008).

We think that it is wrong to give millions of pounds of taxpayers’ money to a subsidiary of a firm that helped run Abu Ghraib, where prisoners were systematically subjected to appalling abuse.

We also think that it is wrong to ask Scots to give personal information to a company whose parent company is closely linked to the US military and intelligence communities.

We think that the Scottish Government’s decision to work with CACI is in conflict with its opposition to the war in Iraq and with its duty to uphold human rights. And we fear that the Scottish Government’s relationship with CACI may in future prevent it speaking out about concerns over the activities of CACI and other private contractors in war zones around the world.

We the undersigned call on the Scottish Government to cancel the contract awarded to CACI Ltd and to take steps to ensure that the Scottish people can have confidence in the ethical probity of the 2011 Census.

…

The petition “An ethical Scottish census in 2011” was created and written by Richard Haley and Julia Davidson and is hosted online by Scotland Against Criminalising Communities.