- WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The
U.S. Army general under investigation for anti-Islamic remarks has been
linked by U.S. officials to the Iraqi prisoner abuse scandal, which experts
warned could touch off new outrage overseas.
-
- A Senate hearing into the abuse of Iraqi prisoners was
told on Tuesday that Lt. Gen. William Boykin, an evangelical Christian
under review for saying his God was superior to that of the Muslims, briefed
a top Pentagon civilian official last summer on recommendations on ways
military interrogators could gain more intelligence from Iraqi prisoners.
-
- Critics have suggested those recommendations amounted
to a senior-level go-ahead for the sexual and physical abuse of prisoners,
possibly to "soften up" detainees before interrogation -- a charge
the Pentagon denies.
-
- Congressional aides and Arab-American and Muslim groups
said any involvement by Boykin could spark new concern among Arabs and
Muslims overseas the U.S. war on terrorism is in fact a war on Islam.
-
- "This will be taken as proof that what happened
at Abu Ghraib (prison) is evidence of a broader culture of dehumanizing
Arabs and Muslims, based on the American understanding of the innate superiority
of Christendom," said Chris Toensing, editor of Middle East Report,
a U.S.-based quarterly magazine.
-
- One Senate aide, who asked not to be identified, said
any involvement by Boykin could be explosive. "Even if he knew about
the abuse, that would be a big deal," he said.
-
- Boykin has declined comment, and defense officials could
not say what the extent of his involvement or knowledge about the mistreatment
of Iraqi prisoners might have been.
-
- Boykin touched off a firestorm last October after giving
speeches while in uniform in which he referred to the war on terrorism
as a battle with "Satan" and said America had been targeted "because
we're a Christian nation." He said later he was not anti-Islam or
any other religion.
-
- President Bush distanced himself from Boykin's remarks,
but the Pentagon said it would not fire the general, who played a role
in the 1993 clash with Somali warlords and the ill-fated hostage rescue
attempt in Iran in 1980.
-
- CALLS FOR REASSIGNMENT
-
- Hussein Ibish, communications director for the Arab American
Anti-Discrimination Committee, said his group and others had repeatedly
called for Boykin to be reassigned to a less sensitive job until the Pentagon
inspector general completes his investigation of Boykin's remarks.
-
- Senate Armed Services Committee Chairman John Warner
and congressional Democrats have also urged Boykin to step aside, but the
Pentagon has defended his right to free speech.
-
- Defense officials said the IG investigation, begun last
fall, was nearly done and a report could be issued next month.
-
- "I'm not saying Boykin is directly responsible.
... But there is a collective failure here," Ibish said. "There
is a tolerance in our society, in our government, in our media for hateful
rhetoric when directed against Arabs and Muslims.
-
- "It definitely contributes to a climate in which
these young MPs apparently felt it was ... OK to abuse Muslim and Arab
men like this."
-
- Ibrahim Hooper, spokesman for the Council on American
Islamic Relations, chided the Pentagon for not acting promptly to discipline
Boykin and the delayed engagement of top military leaders on the prisoner
abuse scandal.
-
- "It creates a climate in which ... the perpetrators
believe they're carrying out the policies of those above them, whether
those policies are explicit or not," Hooper said.
-
- Copyright © 2004 Reuters Limited. All rights reserved.
Republication or redistribution of Reuters content is expressly prohibited
without the prior written consent of Reuters. Reuters shall not be liable
for any errors or delays in the content, or for any actions taken in reliance
thereon.
-
- http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=578&ncid=
- 578&e=2&u=/nm/20040511/ts_nm/iraq_abuse_general_dc
|