Red Cross Says `Significant Problems' Remain at Guantanamo Bay
Sunday, December 5, 2004 at 01:44AM
TheSpook
The U.S. prison camp for foreign fighters and
terror suspects in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, still suffers from inhumane
conditions and treatment, the International Committee of the Red Cross
said. "The ICRC remains concerned that significant problems regarding
conditions and treatment at Guantanamo Bay have not yet been adequately
addressed,'' the Geneva-based group said today in a statement on its
Web site. Its findings came following a June visit to the prison. The
agency didn't specify the problems and declined to confirm a New York
Times report today that said the Red Cross had seen methods
``tantamount to torture'' of prisoners in Guantanamo. It was the first
time the Red Cross, which has been visiting the prison since January
2002, suggested U.S. practices there amounted to torture, the Times
said. The American military base holds about 600 foreigners, including
many seized during the invasion of Afghanistan in late 2001 after the
Sept. 11 attacks on America. [more]
The administration's response to the
Red Cross report was unsurprising. The military brushed off the Red
Cross's complaints when they were made, just as it did at Abu Ghraib.
On Tuesday, Lawrence Di Rita, a spokesman for Defense Secretary Donald
Rumsfeld, said the Red Cross had "their point of view," which was not
shared by the Bush administration. The Red Cross's point of view,
however, is reflected in the Geneva Conventions and in American law. [more]
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