IRAQ: The highest-ranking US soldier to be court-martialled in Baghdad's Abu Ghraib jail case yesterday admitted beating and humiliating prisoners, including forcing some to masturbate.
Staff Sgt Ivan Frederick (38) told the hearing he had been trying to prepare the detainees for interrogation. He pleaded guilty to five charges, including indecent acts and dereliction of duty and assault. But he denied some of the details. "I was wrong about what I did and I shouldn't have done it. I knew it was wrong at the time because I knew it was a form of abuse," Frederick said.
The charges relate to three incidents in October and November last year. In one, naked prisoners were piled into a pyramid. He also told how Iraqi police smuggled in guns and drugs for prisoners.
Judge Colonel James Pohl is due to sentence Frederick today. In return for pleading guilty, some charges have been dropped, Frederick's lawyer Gary Myers said.