Furious Iraqis wait at the gates of
Abu Ghraib
GRIPPING photographs, waving pieces of paper bearing
the numbers assigned to prisoners, many Iraqis are
furiously awaiting the hypothetical release of
relatives being held in the sinister Abu Ghraib
prison. In recent days, for many Iraqis this prison
has become a telling symbol of the U.S. occupation
after the revelation of abuses suffered by the
prisoners being held there.
“We
would rather have Saddam’s hell than Bush’s
paradise,” affirms Haidar Hassan, whose brother
Ahmad, 25, has been held at the prison for nearly
four months after having been arrested near the site
where a homemade bomb exploded.
On
Tuesday, indignation grew among the crowd after the
revelations about abuse of the imprisoned Iraqis.
Built
by British business during the 1960s, the prison
sprawls over 115 hectares, with high walls,
watchtowers and barbed wire.
In
spite of the revelation of torture inflicted by U.S.
troops on the prisoners, accusations against six
prison guards and denunciations against seven
officers, few Iraqis are convinced that any changes
have taken place inside.
“They are animals, not human beings,” said Faruk
Jalaf, whose three brothers are imprisoned in Abu
Ghraib.
|
