'Interrogation through abuse'

2005-01-11 08:56

San Diego - Navy Seals and CIA officials kicked, punched, choked and gouged the eyes of detainees in 2003 at a United States military base in Iraq, a former Seal testified.

The witness testified on Monday that he saw the "interrogation by means of abuse" take place in 2003 at Camp Jenny Pozzi, the Seal base at Baghdad International Airport, in an area the troops called the "sand pit."

He said a prisoner under interrogation by the CIA in October 2003 was abused by two or three Seals.

On another occasion a month later, the witness said, he watched for 10 minutes as Seals punched, choked and poked their fingers in the eye of Iraqi Manadel al-Jamadi, who also was punched by a CIA official when he did not answer questions.

Died during interrogation

Al-Jamadi, a suspect in the bombing of a Red Cross facility in Iraq, died a few hours after he was captured during a joint CIA-special operations mission in November 2003. He died while being interrogated by CIA personnel in the shower room of the Abu Ghraib prison.

The former Seal, who was not identified, was the government's main witness at Monday's Article 32 hearing.

The hearing, the military equivalent of a civilian grand jury, was for a Navy Seal lieutenant who is accused of assault, maltreatment and conduct unbecoming an officer for his handling of detainees, including al-Jamadi. A navy officer hearing the evidence will make a recommendation whether the lieutenant, who also has not been identified, should face a court martial.

Although the lieutenant is not charged with al-Jamadi's death, it could be an aggravating factor that could yield stiffer punishment.

The ex-Seal who testified on Monday served under the lieutenant in Iraq, and was kicked out of the elite unit after he was convicted of stealing a fellow Seal's bulletproof vest. The sailor said he saw the lieutenant abuse prisoners, including al-Jamadi, three different times.

Defence attorney Matthew Freedus challenged the ex-Seal's credibility during his two-hour cross-examination.

Other details about the October 2003 interrogation were deemed classified.

Details of al-Jamadi's death, such as what position he was in when he died, were also deemed classified by the CIA. However, Freedus said the CIA has declassified the matter and will allow him to present details in the hearing, perhaps as early as Tuesday.

- AP