Rumsfeld gets frosty reception
2004-05-13 16:42
Abu Ghraib - Iraqi prisoners gave US Defence Secretary Donald Rumsfeld a frosty reception on Thursday as he toured the Baghdad jail at the centre of revelations of abuses by US troops, during a surprise visit to Iraq.
Hundreds of Iraqi security detainees watched from behind a concertina-wire perimeter fence as Rumsfeld toured the facility in a Rhino Runner armoured vehicle.
Some of the prisoners gestured a thumbs-down to their surprise visitor, others held aloft a tattered Iraqi flag. Most stood in silence with their arms folded as they were paraded for their US guest.
Rumsfeld had told reporters he wanted to hear from those involved in the day-to-day work of detainee operations.
"We care about the detainees being treated right. We care about soldiers behaving right. We care about command systems working" he told journalists travelling with him from Washington.
- AFP