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| Version 1 | Version 2 |
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| 'Guantanamo abuse boasts' probed | 'Guantanamo abuse boasts' probed |
| (1 day later) | |
| The Pentagon has ordered an inquiry into alleged abuses at Guantanamo Bay after reports that camp guards boasted of beating and mistreating detainees. | |
| A marine sergeant who visited the camp has said she understood "striking detainees was a common practice". | A marine sergeant who visited the camp has said she understood "striking detainees was a common practice". |
| The sergeant's sworn statement said she had overheard a guard describe slamming a detainee's head into a cell door. | The sergeant's sworn statement said she had overheard a guard describe slamming a detainee's head into a cell door. |
| The US has meanwhile rejected a call by British Foreign Secretary Margaret Beckett to close Guantanamo Bay. | The US has meanwhile rejected a call by British Foreign Secretary Margaret Beckett to close Guantanamo Bay. |
| Camp 'unacceptable' | Camp 'unacceptable' |
| Ms Beckett is the highest ranking British official to attack the US over the camp, where hundreds of "war on terror" suspects are being held without charge. | Ms Beckett is the highest ranking British official to attack the US over the camp, where hundreds of "war on terror" suspects are being held without charge. |
| She said the US detention camp did as much to radicalise extremists as it did to promote security. | She said the US detention camp did as much to radicalise extremists as it did to promote security. |
| I took the detainee by the head and smashed his head into the cell door Unnamed guard quoted in affidavit | I took the detainee by the head and smashed his head into the cell door Unnamed guard quoted in affidavit |
| "The continuing detention without fair trial of prisoners is unacceptable in terms of human rights, but it is also ineffective in terms of counter-terrorism." | "The continuing detention without fair trial of prisoners is unacceptable in terms of human rights, but it is also ineffective in terms of counter-terrorism." |
| But a US spokesman said the camp was needed to house "some very dangerous people", including those who were behind the 9/11 attacks. | But a US spokesman said the camp was needed to house "some very dangerous people", including those who were behind the 9/11 attacks. |
| The Pentagon's inspector general said the US military's Southern Command, which oversees the Guantanamo Bay camp, had been ordered to investigate complaints of alleged mistreatment. | The Pentagon's inspector general said the US military's Southern Command, which oversees the Guantanamo Bay camp, had been ordered to investigate complaints of alleged mistreatment. |
| Beatings 'common practice' | Beatings 'common practice' |
| Military lawyers who represent detainees at the camp have filed an affidavit that describes guards boasting of abusing prisoners. | Military lawyers who represent detainees at the camp have filed an affidavit that describes guards boasting of abusing prisoners. |
| Marine Sgt Heather Cerveny, who went to the base three weeks ago as a legal aide to a military lawyer, said five navy guards described in detail how they beat up detainees. | Marine Sgt Heather Cerveny, who went to the base three weeks ago as a legal aide to a military lawyer, said five navy guards described in detail how they beat up detainees. |
| "The one sailor specifically said 'I took the detainee by the head and smashed his head into the cell door'," she said in the affidavit. | "The one sailor specifically said 'I took the detainee by the head and smashed his head into the cell door'," she said in the affidavit. |
| Human rights groups have criticised the camp since it opened in 2002 | Human rights groups have criticised the camp since it opened in 2002 |
| "From the whole conversation, I understood that striking detainees was a common practice," the sergeant wrote. | "From the whole conversation, I understood that striking detainees was a common practice," the sergeant wrote. |
| "Everyone in the group laughed at the others' stories of beating detainees." | "Everyone in the group laughed at the others' stories of beating detainees." |
| The sergeant also reported that some guards claimed they denied detainees privileges purely to annoy them. | The sergeant also reported that some guards claimed they denied detainees privileges purely to annoy them. |
| The BBC's James Westhead in Washington says the allegations are significant because they come from a serving member of the US military. | The BBC's James Westhead in Washington says the allegations are significant because they come from a serving member of the US military. |
| Separately, the Red Cross said on Friday that it had met top terror suspects at the camp. | Separately, the Red Cross said on Friday that it had met top terror suspects at the camp. |
| The US has said it recently transferred the alleged mastermind of the 9/11 attacks, Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, and other al-Qaeda suspects to the camp. | The US has said it recently transferred the alleged mastermind of the 9/11 attacks, Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, and other al-Qaeda suspects to the camp. |
| They were believed to have been held before that in secret CIA-run jails. | They were believed to have been held before that in secret CIA-run jails. |
| Some 450 terror suspects are thought to be detained at the camp. | Some 450 terror suspects are thought to be detained at the camp. |