IRAQ:A senior US army officer at a US-run prison in Iraq that holds former top aides to Saddam Hussein and insurgents has been charged with "aiding the enemy", the US military said yesterday.
Lieut-Col William Steele, the commander of the 451st military police detachment, was in charge of the detention facilities at Camp Cropper near Baghdad international airport when the alleged offences occurred.
He is also charged with having an improper relationship with a translator, fraternising with the daughter of a detainee, providing mobile phones to prisoners, unauthorised possession of classified information, and keeping pornographic videos.
"He has been in detention in Kuwait since last month pending an Article 32 hearing, which is a preliminary hearing where evidence will be presented to determine whether this should go to court martial," spokeswoman Lieut-Col Josslyn Aberle said.
Camp Cropper holds more than 3,000 detainees, including former high-ranking members of Saddam Hussein's government and prisoners who were transferred from Abu Ghraib prison, notorious for the prisoner abuse scandal involving US troops.
The US military said the dates of the alleged offences ranged from October 2005 to February 2007. Lieut-Col Steele was accused of "aiding the enemy" by providing detainees with unmonitored mobile phones between October 2005 and October 2006, it said. Other charges included:
- knowingly and wrongfully fraternising with the daughter of a detainee, wherein such acts constituted conduct unbecoming an officer in the armed forces.
- wrongfully providing special privileges to and maintaining an inappropriate relationship with an interpreter.
- having unauthorised possession of classified information . . . and wilfully retaining the same and failing to deliver it to the officer or employee of the US.
- wrongfully and knowingly storing classified information in his living space.
- wrongfully and knowingly possessing pornographic videos.
"These charges are merely an accusation of wrongdoing. Lieut-Col Steele is presumed innocent unless and until he is proved guilty beyond a reasonable doubt of any alleged offence," the US military said.
Camp Cropper was made famous by media reports that Saddam was held there during his incarceration. But for the first time, the military said yesterday he had been held in another, secret facility. He had visited Camp Cropper only for medical checkups and stayed there in the days leading up to his execution on December 30th. - (Reuters)