The court martial of a member of the Navy Seals accused of abusing an Iraqi detainee who later died in Central Intelligence Agency custody is providing revealing glimpses of the agency's involvement in the prisoner abuse scandal.
[. . .]
In five minutes, Mr. Cerrillo said, he struck the prisoner 10 to 15 times, pushed him down and "shoved his face into the ground." He added, "I was told by security personnel not to strike him in the face because it would be hard to turn him in."
[. . .]
But the next month, again with C.I.A. personnel along, Lieutenant Ledford's platoon captured Manadel al-Jamadi in a raid near Baghdad in November 2003. Platoon members have testified that they repeatedly kicked, hit and poked Mr. Jamadi with their rifles before turning him over to the C.I.A. The tactics were aimed at heightening fear in a prisoner they knew was headed for interrogation, Mr. Holferty said. Mr. Jamadi died several hours later in a shower stall at Abu Ghraib prison after being turned over to the C.I.A. for questioning.
The above is from David S. Cloud's "Seal Officer's Trial Gives Glimpse of C.I.A.'s Role in Abuse" in this morning's New York Times.
Tori e-mails to highlight Elaine Sciolino's "Europe Gets Iran to Extend Freeze in Nuclear Work:"
The foreign ministers of Britain, France and Germany persuaded Iran on Wednesday to continue its freeze on nuclear activities, averting a diplomatic crisis that could have led to punitive international measures against Iran.
In exchange, the Europeans offered to present Iran with detailed, step-by-step proposals by early August at the latest on how to move toward consensus on the shape of Iran's nuclear program. Last November in Paris, Iran agreed to suspend all of its uranium enrichment and reprocessing activities while it negotiated the economic, nuclear, political and security benefits it would receive.
Despite the progress on Wednesday, the Europeans and the Iranians remain far apart on their ultimate goals. The Europeans want to prolong the freeze in Iran's enrichment activities until it becomes permanent, doling out trade, political, economic and security rewards, including access to nuclear energy, along the way.
Markus e-mails to note Nick Madigan's "Early Heat Wave Kills 12 Illegal Immigrants in the Arizona Desert:"
"I'm never going through that again," said José Jacinto, 20, from Michoacán, Mexico, who had crossed the border clandestinely in a group of 14 people trying to blend into the United States work force, like countless others every day. "I got really scared out there. Maybe next time, it'll kill me."
Somewhere in the scorching expanse of the Sonoran Desert, two people in Mr. Jacinto's group, ages 15 and 17, died before his eyes, he said. Mr. Jacinto recalled that he fainted of dehydration three times.
"I couldn't walk any more," he said in Spanish, as a ceiling fan struggled to shake the overbearing heat above him. "And my eyes got foggy. I couldn't see. But I'm better now."
Yes, Priscilla Owens was confirmed yesterday. I'd steer you to Folding Star's post "Owen Confirmed, Democracy Blighted:"
My anger at the Senate Dems for caving in at the last minute and giving the Republicans this filibuster victory hasn't abated. With the confirmation today of Priscilla Owen, we've seen just how much of a win this truly is for Bush and the Republicans, and what a blow to the minority voice in the Senate.
Owen was confirmed today by a vote of 56-44. Every Republican but one voted in favor of this woman who never met a Corporation she didn't love and value about the rights of individuals. The sole exception was Senator Chafee of Rhode Island, showing the sense that he should have demonstrated back during the Committee hearings on John Bolton.
And there will be a "fact check" on an item from the Times hopefully tonight. It's Indymedia roundup this evening so that will take priority. However, Krista was bothered by an article and e-mailed on it. Last night, I composed an entry that I want to re-read before posting (not for spelling, for tone).
The e-mail address for this site is common_ills@yahoo.com.