US frees 1000 detainees
From: Reuters
From correspondents in Baghdad, Iraq
August 27, 2005
THE US military said it has freed 1000 detainees from Iraq's notorious Abu Ghraib prison at the Baghdad government's request, in the largest release yet.
It was not clear if the decision was linked to a demand by Arab Sunnis opposed to a draft constitution that authorities release Sunni prisoners so they can participate in a referendum on the text and elections later this year.
"I know this is a big one, but I can't say if it is related to anything that is going on," US military spokesman Lieutenant Colonel Steven Boylan said today.
Whether or not it was part of negotiations on the charter, the release is likely to ease concerns over the estimated 10,000 Iraqi prisoners held in US detention centres in Iraq.
"This is a good move that we definitely welcome," said Hussein al-Falluji, one of 15 Sunnis on the panel drafting the constitution.
The plight of prisoners in the US-run Abu Ghraib, once one of Saddam Hussein's most feared prisons, has been one the most emotional issues for Iraqis since a US-led invasion toppled the former Iraqi president in 2003.
A scandal broke in the facility west of Baghdad last year when leaked photographs of US military guards abusing prisoners and forcing them to simulate sexual acts provoked an international outcry.
"This major release, the largest to date, marks a significant event in Iraq's progress toward democratic governance and the rule of law," said a US military statement.
US military officials said detainees sent to Abu Ghraib typically spend six months to a year in custody before a decision is made in Iraqi courts on whether to prosecute them.
US military lawyers in Baghdad have estimated that 80 to 85 per cent of those arrested by US forces are released without being convicted....
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