Re: Iraqi Prisoners: "Yes, the beatings happen, yes, all the time." From ABC (that's A as in Austrailian) through Reuters. Abuse of Iraqi prisoners 'common' Three US military policemen who served at Baghdad's Abu Ghraib prison say they have witnessed unreported cases of prisoner abuse and that the practice against Iraqis is commonplace. ... Although public attention has focused on the dehumanising photos, some members of the 870th MP unit say the faces in those images were not the only ones engaged in cruel behaviour. "It was not just these six people," Sgt Sindar said. "Yes, the beatings happen, yes, all the time." ... Photos obtained by Reuters show US soldiers looking into the body bags of three Iraqi prisoners killed by 870th MP guards during a prison riot in the fall of 2003. One photograph shows a bearded man with much of his bloodied forehead removed by the force of a bullet. "We were constantly being attacked, we had terrible support ... also being extended all the time, a lot of us had problems with our loved ones suffering from depression," Dave Bischel, another military police officer, said. "It all contributes to the psychological component of soldiers when they get stressed." Sergeant Mike Sindar, 25, of the Army National Guard's 870th Military Police Company, says it is a common thing to abuse prisoners. "I saw beatings all the time," he said. "A lot of people had so much pent-up anger, so much aggression." Sgt Sindar and the other military policemen, who have returned to California from Iraq, spoke with the Reuters news agency. I personally think it would be far short of justice for General Shinsiki to be able to knee Donald Rumsfeld repeatedly in the testicles. A major contributer, as these vets indicate, is the pressure that comes from being so short on manpower. This scandal is NOT going away. It may not happen now, but Rummy will be toast before the Summmer Solstice IMO.