Ex-inmates sue US contractors

2004-06-10 07:53

Washington - Human rights lawyers took the unusual step of filing a racketeering lawsuit on Wednesday against US civilian contractors who worked at the Abu Ghraib prison near Baghdad. The suit alleges contractors conspired to execute, rape and torture prisoners during interrogations to boost profits from military payments.

Some of the new abuse allegations were among the cruellest described within the Iraqi prisons.

One person, identified in court documents only as a prisoner named Rasheed, told lawyers his tongue was shocked and his toenails pulled out. < P>A second person, identified as a prisoner named Ahmed, said he was forced to watch while his 63-year-old father was tortured to death.

The suit seeks payments for the alleged victims and a ban on future government contracts for Titan Corporation of San Diego and CACI International of Arlington, Virginia, whose employees worked as government interrogators and translators.

Named as defendants are Adel Nakhla, a former Titan employee, and two CACI employees, Steven Stefanowicz and John Israel. All three were implicated in abuses in the investigative report by Major General Antonio Taguba.

- AFP