>> I don't think we know the whole story as yet....and so far what I have seen qualifies as abuse but not torture....
<<
Mowhoush, 57, died during interrogation Nov. 26 at Qaim, Iraq. The military has said Mowhoush died from asphyxiation due to smothering and chest compression. The CIA said one of its agents may have been involved and referred the case to the Justice Department for investigation.
wkrc.com
Local Soldier Investigated
LAST UPDATE: 5/28/2004 5:43:14 PM
An Army soldier based at Fort Carson declined
comment Friday on a report that he is under investigation in the
death of an Iraqi general during interrogation by U.S. forces last
fall.
``There is an agenda going on and I am not going to be caught up in it,'' Chief Warrant Officer Lewis Welshofer told The Associated Press in a brief telephone interview. ``I am not at liberty to discuss any of the details.''
Welshofer is married with three children and he grew up in
Middletown, Ohio, said his mother, Sarah Welshofer.
Welshofer and another officer are being investigated in the
death of Maj. Gen. Abed Hamed Mowhoush, who served in Saddam Hussein's military, The Denver Post reported Friday, citing Pentagon documents. The Post did not identify the other officer.
Mowhoush, 57, died during interrogation Nov. 26 at Qaim, Iraq.
The military has said Mowhoush died from asphyxiation due to
smothering and chest compression. The CIA said one of its agents
may have been involved and referred the case to the Justice
Department for investigation.
Welshofer and the other officer took over the interrogation and slid a sleeping bag over Mowhoush's head before rolling him from is back and to his stomach while asking questions, according to the documents reviewed by the Post.
Welshofer is accused of sitting on Mowhoush's chest and placing his hands over the general's mouth, the report says. Documents show both officers were reprimanded. The investigation for a possible court-martial continues, according to documents dated in early May.
Welshofer told the Post he had done nothing wrong while serving in Iraq. ``Absolutely not, I saved lives,'' he said.
Mowhoush was interrogated daily while in custody, according to the documents reviewed by the newspaper.
``Approximately 24 to 48 hours prior to (Nov. 26), MG Mowhoush was questioned by (other governmental agency officials), and statements suggest that MG Mowhoush was beaten during that interrogation,'' the summary reportedly said.
Investigators are looking into whether ``Other Governmental
Agency'' employees beat Mowhoush days before his death, according to the Pentagon documents. A CIA spokeswoman declined to comment.
Officials at Fort Carson, where Welshofer is based, have
confirmed some of their troops are being questioned in connection
with alleged mistreatment of Iraqi prisoners. |
