Rioters set fires at Iraq's Abu Ghraib prison

[Kadie]

Rioters set fires at Iraq's Abu Ghraib prison

By SAMEER N. YACOUB, Associated Press Writer

Friday, September 11, 2009


(09-11) 09:19 PDT BAGHDAD, (AP) --

Abu Ghraib prison inmates rioted for a second straight day Friday to demand better conditions, setting fire to mattresses and seizing an assault rifle from a guard before authorities said the situation was brought under control.

Lawmaker Zeinab al-Kinani, who was part of a delegation that negotiated with the prisoners, said they demanded pardons and also the replacement of prison staff who they said were mistreating inmates.

After the delegation agreed to form a committee to study giving amnesty to some prisoners, most of the inmates returned to their cells, al-Kinani said. A small group who had refused to end their protest were forced back into their cells by authorities, and four prisoners were injured in the process, she said.

The prison, long a byword for brutality under former leader Saddam Hussein, gained further notoriety with the 2004 release of photos showing U.S. soldiers abusing prisoners.

The facility is now back under Iraqi control and has been officially renamed the Baghdad Central Prison, though locals still refer to it as Abu Ghraib. Eleven U.S. soldiers were eventually convicted of crimes at the prison.

Read more: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/n/a/2009/09/11/international/i011049D23.DTL&tsp=1#ixzz0Qohfb11c

[thereismore]

1. Not our problem

:sarcasm: