Iraqis 'will forgive jail abuse' (says General Kimmitt) [View All]

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The people of Iraq will forgive US-led occupying forces for the Abu Ghraib prison scandal, according to a senior coalition spokesman. Brig Gen Mark Kimmitt told the BBC's Talking Point programme that the photos of abuse by US soldiers at the Baghdad jail were not representative.

He described the scandal as a "failure of leadership" involving a maximum of 20 soldiers. It was being fully investigated by the US military, Gen Kimmitt added.

The abuses committed at Abu Ghraib, the feared Saddam Hussein-era prison now run by coalition forces, outraged the world after a stream of photos apparently taken by guards emerged. One soldier has been convicted and six others are facing military charges over their alleged abuse of detainees at the jail.

"It's because the scale of this was so small that the people of Iraq will forgive us," said Gen Kimmitt, the deputy director of coalition operations in Iraq. "Most of the people in Iraq recognise that was an isolated incident and our investigations continue to demonstrate that it is fairly isolated and not representative of the 135,000 soldiers who are doing the right thing under tough circumstances every day."

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/3762217.stm