| February 5,
2003 marked the date the majority of the 320th Military Police Battalion
arrived in Iraq as the two-week-a-year soldiers plan was enacted that
called both the National Guard and the Army Reserve in preparation
for war. The responsibilities of this battalion were to guard the
enemy prisoners of war. Because they were deployed so quickly from
the mid-Atlantic region, they ran out of time for any formal lessons
on how to perform their duties as guards.
The battalion, which consisted of insurance agents, checkout clerks
and sales people, would take part in the highly publicized incidents
of prisoner abuse that horrified the nation. The rise of anti-American
insurgency and orders to gather intelligence were cited as some
of the building pressures on the unit.
The following account on the troubled actions of the battalion
is based on interviews with soldiers, their relatives, military
commanders and Army reports.
Entering Camp Bucca, Camp of Iraqi Prisoners
Scott McKenzie, a sergeant who has since been discharged from the
service, stated how they were never prepared or trained on how to
handle a riot or on what steps to take if someone was being assaulted.
After the first riot incident broke out, McKenzie and two other
soldiers badly beat and kicked one of the prisoners. McKenzie claimed
they used the necessary amount of force to regain control of the
prisoners.
The lack of consequences for their actions led to a near complete
breakdown of discipline in the unit. The army then decided upon
Saddam Hussein’s old palaces Abu Ghraib, which held the history
of executions and tortures, as their new U.S. headquarters for detaining
prisoners of war.
Reservists Turned Wardens of the World’s
Largest Prison Ran by the U.S. Army
The number of inmates grew, however the number of guards remained
the same, which created a high-stress environment. Clashes of culture
and a prison filled with large numbers of criminals freed by Saddam
accounted for a lack of compliance among the prisoners.
The population of prisoners skyrocketed from 2,000 to 7,000 and
their average stays became longer and longer, approaching four to
six months. Overcrowding, disciplinary problems and being in the
middle of a hostile fire zone added to already high-anxiety levels.
Some of the other factors that were believed to have caused problems
in the battalion were poor supervision of troops and an unclear
chain of command.
Reports of Abuse Leak out to the Public
- Human rights groups heard numerous complaints of prisoners being
handled roughly or abused by U.S. soldiers
- A riot that broke out in one of the camps resulted in the shooting
of 12 prisoners, three of who were killed.
- At Abu Ghraib, an Iraqi prisoner died while he was being questioned
by a CIA officer and a linguist.
- The worst incident of abuse happened at Abu Ghraib and involved
prisoners being punched, slapped, kicked, forced to strip naked
and form human pyramids. Also, some were ordered to simulate sex
acts.
- Prisoners were forced to stay in unventilated three-by-three
feet cells, handcuffed to the cell doors and were made to wear
women’s underpants.
To date, seven enlisted soldiers are faced with criminal charges.
Most of the blame was placed upon two soldiers who both work as
corrections officers in their civilian life.
New
York Times May 9, 2004
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