April 28, 2013
In light of the recent Boston Marathon Day bombings, many have once again been motivated by fear to single out and scapegoat a certain segment of the population, Arabs and Muslims, in an attempt to hold them responsible for the violence that took place April 15, 2013. Given all the negative aspersions being caste on Muslims as well as foreigners and perceived foreigners in general this past month, it is perhaps more important now than ever before to look back on a very different April back in 2004, exactly nine years ago today. It was on the evening of Wednesday, April 28 that CBS’s 60 Minutes first broke the news that shocked the nation and the entire world. They had obtained 8 exclusive photographs of prisoners detained in Abu Ghraib prison in Baghdad, Iraq being physically and sexually abused by none other than United States military personnel, and the question on everyone’s mind was whether or not this was official U.S. policy, or was it just a couple of soldiers “gone rogue.”
These photographs came to light only because a member of the 372nd Military Police Company, Spc. Sabrina Harmon, took pictures of the torture they inflicted and sent them to friends back home in an apparent attempt to boast about how “tough” she was being with these “terrorists.” Of course, in reality the U.S. military’s victims in this case weren’t “terrorists” at all. According to the military’s own intelligence, which was in turn relayed to the International Red Cross, up to 90% of all inmates interned in U.S. occupational prisons in Iraq, in addition to CIA “black sites”, were innocent and never charged with a crime. Instead they had been turned based on bogus information relayed to them by anonymous citizen “sources”, who in turn were simply responding to U.S. fliers notifying citizens that they could receive thousands of dollars in reward money, paid out under condition that they provide information on people who had “links to terrorism.” But what these painfully graphic photographs demonstrate is that terrorism is by no means exclusive to any cultural, regional, or religious population. The men and women held captive at Abu Ghraib prison and tortured throughout the year 2003 each had families, loved ones, hopes and aspirations much the same way as each and every one of us does. But unlike many of us, they were forced to suffer through unfathomable brutality and humiliation at the hands of their American captors, all in the name of U.S. Imperialism. What’s more, it’s easy to look at these images with disgust and anger directed at American soldiers who could commit such horrendous acts of torture, as indeed we should. But ask yourself: how different are they really from us? By “us”, I refer to the collective values that define us as an American people, who sat by helplessly, watched and even supported this war and countless others – from Vietnam to Afghanistan. It is absolutely essential to understand that neither these wars nor the horrific events unfolding in the pictures below ever could have happened without the public first being desensitized to certain segments of the human population. Throughout American history, groups who have been victimized by this sort of “us vs. them” mentality have included Native Americans, African Americans, Asians (especially the Vietnamese), and now Muslims. This IS in fact what War is in its most naked form. Once all the rhetoric of bringing “freedom” and “democracy” is stripped away, we are left with little, if anything, gained for the betterment of the vast majority of people. If this is indeed what “true democracy” looks like, do you really wish to partake in it?
WARNING: GRAPHIC IMAGERY AHEAD; NOT SUITABLE FOR YOUNG VIEWERS!!:
Sergeant Ivan “Chip” Frederick seemingly enjoys watching detainees chained in brutally uncomfortable stress positions in these photographs. He was a “correctional” officer in the state of Virginia before being stationed at Abu Ghraib in Baghdad in 2003.
Spc. Charles Graner seen here was known as the “ring leader”. He was eventually given the harshest sentence for these photo leaks of all those who were indicted in the case. He received the highest prison sentence of those charged – 10 years, although he only served 6.5 of these. Sergeant Ivan “Chip” Frederick was given a sentence of 8-years, while Pfc. Lynndie England was sentenced to 3. No one else served more than 1 year. Not coincidentally, those at the higher end of military and Intelligence Command were never investigated nor indicted. All in all, 11 low-ranking soldiers faced some sort of penalty in the end.
Once again, “Chip” and yet another victim.Stress Positions:
By far the most famous photo that emerged from Abu Ghraib, the detainee seen here is being tortured through a tactic which originated in Brazil known as “the Vietnam.” It is a torture method in which the victim is made to stand in a stressful position on top of a box, deprived of sleep for hours upon days, and threatened with electrocution if they should lose their balance and fall off. According to a documentary which aired on HBO called “Ghosts of Abu Ghraib”, the fact that these tactics were used is noteworthy because it demonstrates that this wasn’t a case of “a few bad apples” of the U.S. military who “went rouge”, for lack of a better term. They were obviously trained in these tactics.
A detainee who’d somehow had two of his fingers burned off, becomes the butt-of-a-joke to serve the guards’ tasteless humor, who refer to him mockingly as “The Claw” seen written on the back of his orange jumpsuit.
An Iraqi prisoner’s back riddled with bullet holes from a shotgun.
Two of the military’s “dog trainers” said that military intelligence had ordered the use of dogs as a means of interrogation (i.e. torture tactic).
The same prisoner being terrorized by the canine in the previous picture is seen here clearly having his wounds stitched by his captors.
Spc. Lynndie England apparently taking honor in the barbarity that has just occured.
Charles Graner Jr. and Sabrina Harmon pose over the corpses of men allegedly beaten to death by CIA interrogators or private interrogators. The victim seen here is said to be Manadel al-Jamadi, a “ghost prisoner”; meaning he was unidentified by agents involved in his capture and his death went unrecorded.
After the men were beaten to death by the unnamed interrogators, their bodies were packed in ice and covered in duct tape.
Captives were regularly stripped naked, showered with intensely cold water and brutally beaten.
Graner seen striking at prisoners’ heads.
The man seen here, covered in mud, suffered from severe mental illness and was prone to harming himself. The staff at Abu Ghraib took delight in this and found it quite humorous. Here he is, legs chained, and covered in mud and feces, forced to try and walk in a straight line. He was never charged with any link to terrorism whatsoever. Below, this very same man is chained and made to insert a banana in his butt.
Spc. Lynndie England seen here mercilessly dragging a prisoner across the ground. And below: She is photographed with Charles Graner as they placed bags over detainees’ heads and forced them to stroke themselves in front of women, something which must have been especially shameful for them in light of their religious customs.
Forced into sexually degrading positions as a means of humiliation. Clearly nothing was off-limits in the U.S. military’s attempts to “break” these men in.
Humiliating words were written across the captives’ bodies in English, a language foreign to the vast majority of them.
The infamous “pyramid” photo, in which Charles Graner and Sabrina Harmon are photographed triumphantly standing over their captives’ mangled bodies. According to one of the men forced to form this human pyramid, each of them was made to masturbate as they climbed one on top of the other.
Graner and England arrogantly giving a “thumbs-up” sign to the camera, displaying their sheer pride in belonging to the “dominant” race. This image, more than any other, symbolizes U.S. imperialism and everything it stands for.
***UPDATE:
The following images have been added as of September 8, 2013:
Another shot of the injuries sustained by an unnamed inmate.
The following image could be one of the most disturbing yet, although it is unclear for certain what exactly is taking place. It was obtained by the Associated Press and was taken in Abu Ghraib in either 2003 or 2004. Perhaps not surprisingly the only person present in this photograph who has so far been positively identified is the man sitting with his back against the wall, identified as Adel L. Nakhla. Note the U.S. flag emblem located on the right shoulder of his uniform.
Further reading:
In Their Own Words: Abu Ghraib Inmates Testify to Abuse and Torture
Videos Amplify Pictures of Violence – Washington Post
Abu Ghraib Photos from About.com
Abu Ghraib Abuse Photos – AntiWar.com
United States Hypocrisy 
Lynndie England is a stupid dyke
completely uncalled for. if you knew anything about this situation you’d know she and graner were a couple.
we know the situation perfectly, why give any respect to these two pieces of shit? they’re going to suck dicks in hell. how is any insult uncalled for? what’s uncalled for is the torture they did, but by all means, join the dick sucking in hell with them.
Can’t we all just get along…?
This was a really great piece. Thank you, Caleb Gee! This is my first article on your blog and it’s very impressive; I will likely check out what else you have when I get the chance. I would really like to start my own blog but have no idea where to begin. Maybe I can pick your brain sometime.. 🙂
What is truly sad is that in these images, in these acts, it is not only the POWs who are degraded and reduced to their most basic human state. The aggressors are also stripped of all humanity. Merely animalistic. They gave in to the desire that exists in ALL OF US to be cruel, angry, mean and apathetic. Very sad.
The truly scary thing is how many people that each of us think we know that would probably turn into such sadistic beings if only put into the situation of authority. Just look at how police officers are behaving across the country for example. It’s a culture of seeing others as enemies to be controlled.
Powerful images, and the sort of inexcusable behaviour that breeds more hatred than it can ever hope to ‘kill’.
Thanks for following redflagflying. It is a small blog, with only occasional posts, and your follow is much appreciated.
Best wishes from England.
Pete.
Thank you so much for following my blog as well! I will be certain to keep a look out for your posts. I’m not sure why this comment was placed into my spam box but I’m so glad I was able to rescue it before it disappeared forever!
For a great read, by Seymour Hersh, “Chain of Command–Abu Graib and Beyond”
Sy Hersh won the Pulitzer for his decryption of US GIs murdering 550 old men, women and children–even suckling babies, in “My Lai4”, in the Vietnam Era.
Anything by Hersh, our best investigative report, is worth a read. In fact, when Woodward and Bernstein were breaking the news, day-by-day, on Pr4esident Nixon, during the Watergate Fiasco–that was in the Washington Post. Getting tired of being scooped everyday as it played-out, the NY Times hired Sy Hersh to get some of that. However, he did not have access to “Deep Throat”!
Well, I’m not sure how appropriate it is to “Like” this – but it’s definitely something that should not be forgotten. People’s president Obama has had eight years to fulfil his promise to close Guantanamo. Haven’t heard if HC has made a similar promise. Probably not. As least she’s out in the open about being a war-monger.
I always thought of ‘liking’ a post as being more like liking the fact the content is being shared than actually liking the content. And as for Obama and GITMO, preach on! I know many apologists will say congress blocked his plan to close GITMO but that’s only partially correct, as his plan would have moved the detainees to US domestic prisons which isn’t much of a solution at all as Amerikkkan prisons are in fact hellholes comparable to Guantanamo. He should have set all the prisoners free, due to the fact that they were illegally captured and detained in the first place. And Guantanamo Bay should be returned to revolutionary Cuba once and for all instead of being the outpost for imperialism and torture on the island that it is now.
Congress has been blocking the closure of GITMO. Carol Rosenbloom, a reporter for the Miami Herald, provides the only permanent beat coverage of the Base. Obama has been making an end-run around Congress, reducing the number of “Residents”. In time, it should be a financial disgrace–keeping the prison just to house less than 50 men.
Perhaps Trump will privatize it and, of course, the cost of operation will surely triple.
I think that Guantanamo must be returned to Cuba as it was illegally seized and stolen in the first place. What a shame to have such a horrific militarized place on such a beautiful island.
When we send an Army to do what a small detachment of Special Ops could do–get in, have a plan and an exit strategy–we are just asking for trouble. The unethical, illegal (under the Geneva Conventions), and inhumane actions of our troops just detracts from any of the merits–frankly, none–in invading Iraq. In essence, Bush and Cheney–both Draft Dodgers–posted the recruitment posters for al Jihadist Groups throughout MENA (Middle East and North Africa).
For anyone who wishes to find-out the true story behind such actions, read anything by Seymour Hersh. Sy Hersh shot to fame with “My Lai 4”, published in 1969. Army Lt. Calley is the most-noted names, but the Hamlet became a crap-shoot, an outright massacre of Old Men, Women and Children, in South Vietnam, in 1968. Besides his My Lai 4, he wrote “Cover-Up”, about the aftermath. He wrote numerous articles in The New Yorker. “The Killing of Osama bin Ladin” is a short, more realistic explanation of what really happened. Last night, I finished “The Samson Option”, in which Hersh explained how Israel got nukes, under Washington and Moscow’s noses, and they didn’t realize it.
Seymour Hersh is an outstanding investigator and journalist. Over the past 5 years or so the mainstream media has been trying very hard to discredit his impeccable investigative journalism because he has been exposing the Bush and Obama administration’s various schemes in southwest Asia. He also exposed the truth behind the sarine gas attack in Syria as being a false flag by the rebels and Erdogan to draw the US into launching a missile into Damascus.
In “The Killing of Osama bin Laden, after the first chapter is an interesting read on behind0the-scenes Intelligence work–including with China and Russia. Gen. Mike Flynn, Trump’s appointee to National Security Advisor is not portrayed well, at all. Flynn is a hot-head, and the Generals forced him to retire in 2014. Perhaps that’s why, when Trump was receiving his Intel-Light briefings, Flynn had gotten into an argument with the CIA briefer. Perhaps that’s why Flynn wasn’t the Secretary of Defense appointment, as had initially been suggested. FUN TOMES NOW, IN THE WEST WING!
Flynn is an islamophobic bigot and a crazed ideologue from what I have been able to gather of him.
From all these pictures I am astonished where is UNO where is humanitarian ,shame all these are going nowadays
I request to all opponents of every army do not these activities due to humanity .
Caleb this is horrid. The images are disturbing.
And there’s worse. Have you seen the Afghanistan killing spree photos in which US soldiers posed with the bodies of slaughtered civilians?
There is just enough inhumane treatment I can survive per month
How fast you fools will forget the Americans that have been slaughtered by these fuckers. * you cry for them! You are pathetic and hopefully you will find yourselves in need a ……as you say sick Americans. I wouldn’t help you because you are the weakest link. You would just be us down. Assholes bleeding hearts because you have no clue what it means to be shot at and hated by another. These people will kill you first chance they get. Make no mistake. You fucking hippies
By definition a fool is someone who is easily conned, hoodwinked or deceived. That just about sums you up to a T. These so-called “fuckers” didn’t do anything to anyone of us, and if they’ve “killed Americans” it’s because the Americans have invaded and occupied their homes. Do you really think they’re just going to sit there and allow this to happen without fighting back? There is cause and effect in the world, and imperialist aggression is the cause, murder and mayhem is the effect.
are you saying the images are not disturbing?
Whether they hate me, that I can’t tell. Whether I want your help, I know I don’t.
Make no mistake about it.
Exactly. Makagutu, why does my site tend to draw such clear psychopaths to it sometimes?
Hard to tell but I think that fellow is really sick
Sick or just really stupid
Wow I can’t believe you. People like you are the reason why so much hate exists! Have ever thought of actually being in contact with muslims or whatever ethnicity of these detained, be sure that they won’t kill you because they don’t carry as much hate in their heart as yours.
Aaron, when GIs slaughter old men, women and even babies, we empower the rebels in the very country that we have invaded. The locals don’t know or care about whose in-charge in Baghdad or Kabul; because, those “Presidents” don’t venture outside their palaces without a small army–both on the ground and in the air. We just provide the stuff for the Jihadists recruiting posters.
Those guys are fighting for their country, their way-of-life. Americans go to steal their oil, retaliate for our lying own causes–like WMD and mushroom clouds. And just about every Evil Man that we have fought wars against in the Middle East–Saddam Hussein, Osama bin Laden, the Ayatollahs–had been our Allies at one time. So, how righteous are we in protecting the People of these countries, which we helped put in charge?
One of the greatest comments I’ve ever read Cheekos. And I might even add to that list Gaddafi and Assad to a much lesser extent, though they were never considered “allies” and they didn’t come to power as a result of US interference (in fact they rose to power in defiance of US desires), they decided to be complicit in the so-called “war on terror” early on. And the CIA sent detainees there for rendition and torture. As it turns out going along with the wishes of the US empire still wasn’t enough to save them from US wrath.
I can tell your ass is old
This is the reason why Muslims become terrorists , and they must be not for the people but for those cur terror USA soldiers
The pictures of wounded and maimed children, the “collateral damage” of the wars , seems even more disheartening to me.
Of course. All of it is horrendous. I don’t even believe there is such a thing as “collateral damage” in reality, because the vast majority of the killed and maimed are always “collateral damage”.
Who cares!!!!!! They would do worst to you are your family….
It doesn’t get any worse than maiming someone’s children! The fact that there are people out there who are as brainwashed and irrational as you are is the exact reason that wars will never stop. You think everyone is out there to get you without even caring to see the harm that you have inflicted on others.
Reblogged this on Failure to Listen and commented:
Did we let those men and women back into the USA? The men and women responsible for this torture should be executed or never see freedom again.
Ultimately, those in charge were responsible and should be made accountable. Bush, Cheney, Rumsfeld etc. guilty!!!
Indeed, but considering how this is America, the torturers are granted immunity and those who were tortured are told to “move on” and “turn a new page.” But it’s impossible to turn the page without closing this chapter, meaning holding the torturers all accountable.
I know…they hold victims accountable for everything even their crimes. Time for them to pay, don’t you think? 🙂
It’s long past time for these hypocrites to pay for their war crimes!
Calling for them to be executed would put you in no better position than the perpetrators. That is the same mentality that those brutal soldiers had. Perhaps some of their sentences were not severe enough, however; those higher up the chain of command are ultimately responsible and should face the harshest penalty of law. Sadly they were never charged or held accountable.
Sometimes you have to punish and executing some of these people is humane for them and society as they have violated the laws of humanity
Yes! Sorry US, here´s the mirror: List of my Articles on the USA! http://wipokuli.wordpress.com/2014/02/13/list-of-my-articles-on-the-usa/
Andreas Schlüter
Sociologist
Berlin, Germany
Since the Boston Marathon bombing is mentioned I´d like to state that it´s very difficult today to believe official presentations of such incidents: http://wipokuli.wordpress.com/2013/04/16/boston-marathon-strategy-of-tension/
And congrats for the impressive article!
Andreas Schlüter
Sociologist
Berlin, Germany
Thank you for your insights and I too certainly question the narrative we were given about the Boston Marathon bombings! I had my suspicions at the time but no conclusive evidence to affirm or refute the narrative either way. Now I believe the brothers may have certainly have been framed. I will definitely be reading more into this. Thank you!
Reblogged this on HumansinShadow.wordpress.com.
I bet they’ve joined ISIS now.
That would be interesting to know. Are you talking about the Abu Ghraib prisoners or about the American soldiers who are doing the torturing? I can kind of see it both ways (like I could see both becoming ISIS but for different reasons.)
Hey Man,
Greetings. Thanks for deciding to follow my blog. I am usually a bit more…quiet?; Tactful?
Hope I didn’t change your mind. I like your work and hope to see more of it; though I suspect the problem might be to miss it even if I wanted too.
Peace
Thank you for visiting my blog. I welcome diversity of opinions even if I, much like yourself, have no problem sharing whatever I feel about a given situation lol. Hey, that’s what we’re bloggers for right?! I hope to get many more comments from you and we can offer each other feedback on our articles from time to time. (-:
Excellent. I look forward to hearing from you. Um, I would normally agree with you about the gentleman’s ethnicity and indeed it is of no consequence except that it seems especially intolerant when the hater is Jewish; considering this people’s history of persecution. Of course if he didn’t put it right out there “Jewamongyou”, I would never have known that he was an especially odious racist. I would have treated him just like any other racist but just as I detest Netanyahu and his Militarist crowd of…Israelis; I also detest bullies on the playground and Genocide wherever it happens and people like him, let it happen though I seriously doubt he is one to make it happen. Those people aren’t arguing with me on the internet. However, if I gave the impression that his ethnicity had anything to do with my ridicule; I’m Sorry. Totally unintended. I have known many Jewish people and not one of them felt as he does. Well; maybe a few but not most of them and none that I call my friends. Thanks for the soapbox. be in touch
On Fri, May 2, 2014 at 4:10 PM, United States Hypocrisy wrote:
> Caleb Gee commented: “Thank you for visiting my blog. I welcome > diversity of opinions even if I, much like yourself, have no problem > sharing whatever I feel about a given situation lol. Hey, that’s what we’re > bloggers for right?! I hope to get many more comments from you and w” >
Let’s put it this way. Netanyahu and the Likud Party are ideologically equivalent to the American Tea Party, only not as funny.
Uhm…. *facepalm* I can’t take this….
As a start they should be cutting off Sabrina Harman’s thumb! I volunteer! They preach about freedom and human rights and know nothing about it! no mercy in their hearts! i can’t believe such people exist, and knowing they do we send them to prison for 6 months and let them free?!!! what kind of aliens you are? who can cause such harm to other human beings and take a selfie, as proud as ever!!! Shame on you, shame on you, shame on you! The final judgement day will come and you’ll be the first to burn in hell!
Thank you so much for such a heartfelt comment. I see you are well aware how the system works. People who commit such horrible atrocities on behalf of the state are given barely a slap on the wrist whereas many ppl have done nothing to hurt anyone other than themselves and are serving life or worse executed. Thank you for stopping by.
Reblogged this on Wobbly Warrior's Blog.
I think you meant “exactly nine YEARS ago today.”, not “exactly nine months ago today.” Maybe you were thinking about babies. Anyway, it’s a shameful chapter in American history. We should not be bringing large numbers of Muslims into Western societies; it can easily destroy us. By the same token, we should not be invading other countries, dropping bombs on them, poisoning them or embargoing them.
You’d make an alright editor since you’ve pointed out some of the more insignificant typos, I’ll give you that. But as for “we should not have Muslims in Western societies”, perhaps you should be making the case that Westerners keep out of Eastern affairs then, since we are so deeply vested in using up all of their oil resources.
Oh Ouch!!! “Fucking Jew Among You”
I’ll bet you support the Israeli Governments policy of Genocide regarding the Palestinian Arabs don’t you?
Shouldn’t be bringing Muslims into Western Society?
You know? I have nothing against Jews. I know many.
I do however have a serious problem with Racist Jews who forget the lessons of the past and think it acceptable to persecute other races.
Jews who believe that they have exclusive claim to a land that they were driven out of two thousand years ago in fulfilment of prophesy.
When the Temple fell in 70 AD; God’s final disapproval was manifested upon the Jews who then became a people without a land.
They were intended to stay that way and any attempt to reclaim the land for their exclusive use is bound to fail.
Peace might be found and might have been found before if Israel acknowledges it’s position and seeks asylum from the world in an equal partnership with the Palestinian Arabs or by dividing the land fairly. Now there is something Israel has never tried. Honesty and Fidelity.
Now you are really going to say I’m a Jew hater. Probably call me a Nazi too. But you couldn’t be further from the truth.
I actually support a two State solution to the Palestinian issue. There is room for everyone. There must be unless; as I say; you prefer Genocide.
But don’t tell me that Muslims are not fit for Western Society. The Muslim culture has given the world much of the knowledge we have amassed about engineering; mathematics; and art.
There is nothing deficient about Muslims. They have criminals and terrorists just as we do and always have.
There is something deficient about anyone; Westerner; Jew; Arab: Asian; African or otherwise who can not learn to live and get along with those different than themselves.
While you rightly condemn the everyday terror inflicted on the Palestinian people by the State of Israel – along with the inherent injustice of transferring a people who’ve been residing in a land for at least 2,000 years to undesired territory to make room for the State of Israel, the razing and demolition of buildings and peoples’ homes in occupied Palestinian territory, and the continuing expansion of Israeli settlements (an act even the International Community recognizes as illegal) – I feel that your bringing up that the commenter is Jewish severely undermines your condemnation of those people “who can not learn to live and get along with those different from themselves.”
The reason I say this is because, although his screen name is obviously “jewamongyou”, he didn’t actually make any references to Israel or Zionism in his comment (although he obviously views Judaism as a “Western” religion; not sure how that works). I feel like going after him as “a Jew” misses the point.
Having said that, “jewamongyou” is without a doubt an unabashed white supremacist, which means he possesses all of the stupidity and ignorance that being a white supremacist requires. So by all means ridicule this fool! I just think this cat is foolish enough to discredit without needing to reference his religious background or ethnicity.
This is extremely upsetting. Time to shut this prison down. It’s time. They need to transfer all of them out and close it down. Now. Smh. >:-[
Agreed. We in America often see this as an isolated incident but to them this is what occupation looks like.
Yes. And it is building us strong enemies. So it’s time to rein this kinda stuff in already. :((
Couldn’t have said it myself godtisx. Sadly it appears that as long as the military industrial complex continues to thrive and there are so many factions with a vested financial interest in it, we will continue down this road of perpetual warfare. Already the neocons are trying to drum up for war on Syria as they did with Libya, and have been trying to do with Iran for decades /-:
Caleb,
That’s a great point. Like this is about more for Neocons than good common sense and care for American citizens or even the world (including any allies we could have), it’s about money – so that cancels out everything else. Even if it puts us more and more in harms way in the long run, as well as everyone else. They’re living in the past and functioning as if we live in a world past. I seriously dunno how any educated person votes for one of em.’
Excellent point!
It’s no wonder there are those who would bring us before the world court. I wonder if these photos were required viewing people would pay more attention as to what’s going on in the world as a whole.
Indeed, and these images aren’t the only ones either. There’s also the ones from Afghanistan where there are soldiers posing with dead children that the Rolling Stone broke.
don’t forget the children they raped as well … sick fascist pigs