Abu Ghraib prison - AbsoluteAstronomy.com

The Baghdad Central Prison, formerly known as Abu Ghraib prison ( ; also Abu Ghurayb, meaning 'father of the raven' or 'Place of Ravens') is in Abu Ghraib

Abu Ghraib

The city of Abu Ghraib in the Baghdad Governorate of Iraq is located just west of Baghdad's city center, or northwest of Baghdad International Airport. It has a population of 189,000. The old road to Jordan passes through Abu Ghraib...

, an Iraq

Iraq

Iraq ; officially the Republic of Iraq is a country in Western Asia spanning most of the northwestern end of the Zagros mountain range, the eastern part of the Syrian Desert and the northern part of the Arabian Desert....

i city 32 km (20 mi) west of Baghdad

Baghdad

Baghdad is the capital of Iraq, as well as the coterminous Baghdad Governorate. The population of Baghdad in 2011 is approximately 7,216,040...

. It was built by British contractors in the 1950s.

Observers estimated that in 2001, the prison held as many as 15,000 inmates.

In 2002 Saddam

Saddam

–Saddam is an Arabic name which means "One who confronts", other meanings include: "One who frequently causes collisions", "Powerful collider", "One who causes a collision that had bad results", "Powerful confronter", "One who frequently crashes", or "Powerful commander"...

's government began an expansion project to add six new cellblocks to the prison. In October 2002, Saddam Hussein

Saddam Hussein

Saddam Hussein Abd al-Majid al-Tikriti was the fifth President of Iraq, serving in this capacity from 16 July 1979 until 9 April 2003...

gave amnesty to most prisoners in Iraq. After the prisoners were released and the prison was left empty, it was vandalized and looted. Almost all of the documents relating to prisoners were piled and burnt inside of prison offices and cells, leading to extensive structural damage. After years of shared use by United States-led forces and the Iraqi government beginning in 2003 after the Iraq Invasion, on September 2, 2006 the US transferred the prison to complete control of the Iraqis.

Known mass-graves related to Abu Ghraib

Khan Dhari, west of Baghdad - Mass grave with the bodies of political prisoners from Abu Ghraib prison in Baghdad. Fifteen victims were executed on 26 December 1998 and buried by prison authorities under the cover of darkness.

Al-Zahedi, on the western outskirts of Baghdad - Secret graves near a civilian cemetery contain the remains of nearly 1,000 political prisoners. According to an eyewitness, 10 to 15 bodies arrived at a time from the Abu Ghraib prison and were buried by local civilians. An execution on 10 December 1999 in Abu Ghraib claimed the lives of 101 people in one day. On 9 March 2000, 58 prisoners were killed at a time. The last corpse interred was number 993.

United States-led coalition

Until August 2006, the site known as the Abu Ghraib prison was used for detention purposes by both the U.S.-led coalition occupying Iraq and the Iraqi government. Since then, the Iraqi government has controlled the area of the facility known as "The Hard Site". The prison is used to house only convicted criminals. Suspected criminals, insurgents or those arrested and awaiting trial are held at other facilities, commonly known as
"camps" in U.S. military parlance.

The US houses all its detainees at "Camp Redemption", which is divided into five security levels. This camp built in the summer of 2004 replaced the three-level setup of Camp Ganci, Camp Vigilant and Abu Ghraib's Tier 1. The remainder of the facility was occupied by the United States military. In the recent past, Abu Ghraib served as both a FOB (Forward Operating Base) and a detention facility. When the US was using the Abu Ghraib prison as a detention facility, it housed approximately 7490 prisoners there in March 2004.

The current population of detainees is much smaller, because Camp Redemption has a much smaller capacity than Camp Ganci had. Many detainees have been sent from Abu Ghraib to Camp Bucca

Camp Bucca

Camp Bucca was a detention facility maintained by the United States military in the vicinity of Umm Qasr, Iraq. As of June 2011, a group of entrepreneurial Iraqis and Americans are re-building Camp Bucca as Basra Gateway, a logistics city and environmentally-friendly industrial hub to lead the new...

for this reason. The US initially holds all "persons of interest" in Camp Redemption. Some are suspected rebels, and some suspected criminals. Those convicted by trial in Iraqi court are transferred to the Iraqi-run Hard Site.

Reserve soldiers from the 320th military police battalion were charged under the Uniform Code of Military Justice

Uniform Code of Military Justice

The Uniform Code of Military Justice , is the foundation of military law in the United States. It is was established by the United States Congress in accordance with the authority given by the United States Constitution in Article I, Section 8, which provides that "The Congress shall have Power . ....

with prisoner abuse, beginning with an Army Criminal Investigation Division investigation on January 14, 2004.

In April 2004, U.S.

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

television news-magazine 60 Minutes
60 Minutes
60 Minutes is an American television news magazine, which has run on CBS since 1968. The program was created by producer Don Hewitt who set it apart by using a unique style of reporter-centered investigation....

reported on a story from the magazine The New Yorker
The New Yorker
The New Yorker is an American magazine of reportage, commentary, criticism, essays, fiction, satire, cartoons and poetry published by Condé Nast...

, which recounted US-sanctioned torture and humiliation of Iraqi detainees by US soldiers and contracted civilians. The story included photographs' depicting the abuse of prisoners. The events created a substantial political scandal within the US and other coalition countries. (For more information see Abu Ghraib torture and prisoner abuse

Abu Ghraib torture and prisoner abuse

Beginning in 2004, human rights violations in the form of physical, psychological, and sexual abuse, including torture, rape, sodomy, and homicide of prisoners held in the Abu Ghraib prison in Iraq came to public attention...

.)

On April 20, 2004 insurgents fired forty (40) mortar rounds into the prison. Twenty-two detainees were killed and 92 wounded. Commentators thought the attack was either as an attempt to incite a riot or retribution for detainees' cooperating with the United States.

In May 2004, the US-led coalition embarked on a prisoner-release policy to reduce numbers to fewer than 2000. Despite numerous large releases and transfers to Camp Bucca, this goal has yet to be obtained. There continue to be numerous incoming detainees.

In a May 24, 2004 address at the U.S. Army War College

U.S. Army War College

The United States Army War College is a United States Army school located in Carlisle, Pennsylvania, on the 500 acre campus of the historic Carlisle Barracks...

in Pennsylvania

Pennsylvania

The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is a U.S. state that is located in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The state borders Delaware and Maryland to the south, West Virginia to the southwest, Ohio to the west, New York and Ontario, Canada, to the north, and New Jersey to...

, United States President

President of the United States

The President of the United States of America is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president leads the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States Armed Forces....

George W. Bush

George Walker Bush is an American politician who served as the 43rd President of the United States, from 2001 to 2009. Before that, he was the 46th Governor of Texas, having served from 1995 to 2000....

announced that the prison would be demolished. On June 14 Iraqi interim President Ghazi Mashal Ajil al-Yawer

Ghazi Mashal Ajil al-Yawer

Ghazi Mashal Ajil al-Yawar is an Iraqi political figure. He was a Vice President of Iraq under the Iraqi Transitional Government from 2005 to 2006, and was Acting President of Iraq under the Iraqi Interim Government from 2004 to 2005....

said he opposed this decision, followed by the ruling June 21 by U.S. military judge Col. James Pohl, who said that the prison was a crime scene and could not be demolished until investigations and trials were completed.

On April 2, 2005 the prison was attacked by 60 insurgents

Battle of Abu Ghraib

The Battle of Abu Ghraib refers to an April 2, 2005 attack on United States forces at Abu Ghraib prison, which consisted of heavy mortar and rocket fire, under which armed insurgents attacked with grenades, small arms, and two vehicle-borne improvised explosive devices . The U.S...

. In the two hours before being forced to retreat, the attackers suffered at least 50 casualties. (Both killed and injured; according to the US military.) The attackers used small arms, rockets, and RPG's as weapons, and threw grenades over the walls. A Vehicle Born IED (VBIED) detonated just outside the front wall after Marines fired on it. Officials believe that the car bomb was intended to breach the prison wall, enabling an assault and/or mass escape for detainees. Insurgents also attacked military forces nearby on highways in route to the prison for reinforcement. They used ambushes along the roads. Thirty-six persons at or in the prison, including Marines, soldiers, sailors, civilians and detainees, were injured in the attack. Al Qaeda in Iraq claimed responsibility for both of the strikes.

During the week ending August 27, 2005, at the request of the Iraqi government, the US released nearly 1,000 detainees at the Abu Ghraib prison. On December 4, 2005, Reuters

Reuters

Reuters is a news agency headquartered in New York City. Until 2008 the Reuters news agency formed part of a British independent company, Reuters Group plc, which was also a provider of financial market data...

reported that John Pace, human rights

Human rights

Human rights are "commonly understood as inalienable fundamental rights to which a person is inherently entitled simply because she or he is a human being." Human rights are thus conceived as universal and egalitarian . These rights may exist as natural rights or as legal rights, in both national...

chief for the United Nations Assistance Mission in Iraq

United Nations Assistance Mission in Iraq

The United Nations Assistance Mission in Iraq is an entity that was formed by the United Nations in Security Council Resolution 1500 on 14 August 2003.-Mandate:...

(UNAMI), said, "Those held in Abu Ghraib prison were among an estimated 14,000 people imprisoned in violation of United Nations Security Council Resolution 1546

United Nations Security Council Resolution 1546

United Nations Security Council Resolution 1546, adopted unanimously on June 8, 2004, after reaffirming previous resolutions on Iraq, the Council endorsed the formation of the Iraqi Interim Government, welcomed the end of the occupation and determined the status of the multinational force and its...

All prisoners in Iraq except those held by the Ministry of Justice are, technically speaking, held against the law because the Ministry of Justice is the only authority that is empowered by [Iraqi] law to detain and hold anybody in prison.

Transfer to Iraqi control

In March 2006 the U.S. military decided to transfer the 4,500 inmates to other prisons and transfer control of the Abu Ghraib prison to Iraqi authorities. The prison was reported emptied of prisoners in August 2006. The formal transfer was made on September 2, 2006. The formal transfer was conducted between Major General Jack Gardner

John D. Gardner (general)

John D. 'Jack' Gardner is a Lieutenant General in the United States Army. He is currently the deputy commander of EUCOM, in StuttgartGermany. Gardner is a native of Columbus, Ohio.-Deputy Commander MNF-I for detainee operations:...

, Commander of Task Force 134, and representatives of the Iraqi Ministry of Justice and the Iraqi army.

In February 2009 Iraq reopened Abu Ghraib under the new name of Baghdad Central Prison . It was designed to house 3,500 inmates. The government said it planned to increase the number up to 15,000 prisoners by the end of the year.

Notable detainees

Farzad Bazoft
Farzad Bazoft
Farzad Bazoft was an Iranian-born journalist who settled in the United Kingdom in the mid-1970s. He worked as a freelance reporter for The Observer. He was arrested by Iraqi authorities and executed in 1990 after being convicted of spying for Israel while working in Iraq.Bazoft relocated to the...
Ahmad Aziz Rafiq
Yunis Khatayer Abbas
Yunis Khatayer Abbas
Yunis Khatayer Abbas is an Iraqi journalist who is most famous for being the subject of the 2007 documentary The Prisoner or: How I Planned to Kill Tony Blair....
Emad al-Janabi
Emad al-Janabi
Emad Khudhayir Shahuth al-Janabi was an Iraqi blacksmith detained in Abu Ghraib prison where he alleges he was abused by American military personnel and defense contractors.- Imprisonment :...
Satar Jabar
Manadel al-Jamadi
Manadel al-Jamadi
Manadel al-Jamadi was an Iraqi prisoner who died in United States custody during interrogation at Abu Ghraib Prison on November 4, 2003. His name became known in 2004 when the Abu Ghraib scandal made news; his corpse packed in ice was the background for widely-reprinted photographs of grinning...
Ashraf Abdullah Ahsy
Ashraf Abdullah Ahsy
Ashraf Abdullah Ahsy is an Iraqi who was subjected to "extended interrogation techniques" including the use of dogs. Ahsy's story is notable as the Bush administration tried to portray the abuse portrayed in the famous Abu Ghraib prisoner scandal as the unauthorized, after-hours amusement of rogue...

External links

General Janis Karpinski was in charge of Abu Ghraib and now is a talk radio host Interview with Janis 2nd hour of the Interview
Map showing location - globalsecurity.org
Prisoner abused by American soldiers at Abu Ghraib prison (Iraq, April 2004) (GRAPHIC!)
Satellite Photograph - Google Maps
Memo Reveals Bush may have OK'd Torture
The Abu Ghraib Prison Photos – a collection of graphic photos showing torture and humiliation of Iraqi inmates by a group of U.S. soldiers in Abu Ghraib prison, released by The Washington Post
The Washington Post
The Washington Post is Washington, D.C.'s largest newspaper and its oldest still-existing paper, founded in 1877. Located in the capital of the United States, The Post has a particular emphasis on national politics. D.C., Maryland, and Virginia editions are printed for daily circulation...

, ABC News
ABC News
ABC News is the news gathering and broadcasting division of American broadcast television network ABC, a subsidiary of The Walt Disney Company...

, The New Yorker, CBS
CBS
CBS Broadcasting Inc. is a major US commercial broadcasting television network, which started as a radio network. The name is derived from the initials of the network's former name, Columbia Broadcasting System. The network is sometimes referred to as the "Eye Network" in reference to the shape of...

and Global Free Press
New Prison Images Emerge – The Washington Post May 6, 2004 article by Christian Davenport
Chain of Command – The New Yorker May 9, 2004 article by Seymour M. Hersh
Videos Amplify Picture of Violence – The Washington Post May 21, 2004 article by Josh White, Christian Davenport and Scott Higham
Use of Dogs to Scare Prisoners Was Authorized – The Washington Post June 11, 2004 article by Josh White and Scott Higham
After image: the meanings of Abu Ghraib
Thanks Joe Darby – a site for expressions of support for Joe Darby, the soldier that exposed the graphic photos and video that brought the Abu Ghraib prison scandal to light.
Abu Ghraib legal news and resources, JURIST
JURIST
JURIST is an online legal news service hosted by the University of Pittsburgh School of Law, powered by a staff of more than 40 law students working in Pittsburgh and other US locations under the direction of founding Publisher & Editor-in-Chief Professor Bernard Hibbitts, Research Director Jaclyn...
HBO: Ghosts of Abu Ghraib HBO's documentary premiered February 22, 2006.
An Iraq Interrogator's Nightmare, Washington Post 9 Feb 2007
http://www.globalsecurity.org/org/news/2004/040506-iraq-abuse.htm, Prison with a Past by Matthew McAllester
Oral history interview with, Richard Vickery, a former Abu Ghraib prison guard from the Veterans History Project at Central Connecticut State University

The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.

Known mass-graves related to Abu Ghraib

United States-led coalition

Transfer to Iraqi control

Notable detainees

See also

External links