By Simon Assaf:
Documents confirm horror of Abu GhraibUS ‘rendition’ torture flights: here.A new batch of declassified US army documents has strengthened the case that torture in Iraq and Afghanistan was officially sanctioned, widespread and systematic.
Last week George Bush apologised for the abuse at the notorious Abu Ghraib prison in Iraq, describing it as “a mistake”.
But the new documents show that the abuse simply reflected the colonial mentality of the US led occupation – and that it was ordered from above.
One key document, dated 19 May 2004 and recently unearthed by the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), includes the testimony of a US officer.
It outlines a 35-page order commanding interrogators to “go to the outer limits to get information from the detainees”.
The order was sanctioned by Lieutenant General Ricardo Sanchez, the US military commander in Iraq at the time.
Another document, entitled “Allegations of Detainee Abuse in Iraq and Afghanistan” and dated 2 April 2004, shows that senior officials were aware of the abuse.
Anthony Romero of the ACLU said the document proves that “this abuse of power was engineered and accepted at the highest levels of government”.
