US Military says detention procedures improved

The US Military claimed this week that it has learned from investigations into abuse in Iraq and Afghanistan. In a statement to the press, the Pentagon indirectly accepted some responsibility for abuses.

The big news is (1) a new 55-hour training package for Military Police, to be delivered in the US and in Iraq to currently serving forces, which will emphasize "ethics, leadership, the law of warfare, the Geneva Conventions and values." (The military seems to have an allergy to the phrase "human rights.") (2) the prohibition of the use of dogs inside detention facilities and (3) the banning of the practice of holding "ghost detainees."

Even though it is implied that these reforms result from the abuse scandal of 2004, the Army concludes by saying that these plans were made by 2003. Hmmmm.

Allegations also surfaced that agents from other government agencies, such as the CIA, had free access to prisoners in Abu Ghraib and sometimes told MPs there to keep prisoners who were never officially in the system. These so- called "ghost prisoners" were then allegedly subjected to abuse.

Thomas Gandy, a senior military intelligence official who spoke with Ryder at the media roundtable, explained that policies in place to address such situations were not actively enforced or trained among U.S. soldiers. That is happening now, he said.

Gandy said there will be no more ghost detainees; every prisoner is now assigned an internment serial number for tracking purposes, and other government agents -- commonly called OGA by servicemembers working in detention facilities -- will follow DoD rules and regulations on detainee treatment as long as they're in DoD facilities.

Soldiers charged with abusing prisoners at Abu Ghraib have claimed they were following orders from military intelligence specialists to "soften up" detainees for interrogation.

"This idea of 'softening up' has never been part of our doctrine, never been part of our training," Gandy said.

Ryder added that new doctrine clarifies the roles of military police and intelligence agents within prisons and lays out more clearly the relationship between the two to prevent such problems in the future. "The military police are responsible for custody and control and the safe and secure environment in detention facilities," he said. "Military police are not involved in interrogations."