Prisoner Abuse Reportedly Continued After Abu Ghraib

One of the pictures of prisoner abuse in Abu Ghraib that scandalized world opinion in 2004 (AFP) July 23, 2006 -- The group Human Rights Watch says in a new report that U.S. military commanders encouraged abusive interrogations of Iraqi detainees even after the Abu Ghraib prison scandal called public attention to the issue in 2004.

The report, released on July 22, says that between 2003 and 2005, prisoners were routinely physically mistreated, deprived of sleep, and exposed to extreme temperatures as part of the interrogation process.

A Pentagon spokesman, Greg Hicks, said he was not aware of the report, but noted that the military was reviewing its procedures regarding detainees following a Supreme Court ruling that the Geneva Conventions should also apply in the conflict with Al-Qaeda.

In other news, the U.S. military has cleared a soldier of unlawfully killing an Iraqi civilian during a raid in the western city of Al-Ramadi in February. Investigators concluded that Nathan Lynn had reason to believe that the victim, Gani Ahmed Zaben, was carrying a gun when he opened fire.

Lynn has now been authorized to rejoin his unit.

(AP, Reuters)