US Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld arrived in Baghdad Thursday on an unannounced visit in what his aides described was aimed at "calming the storm over prisoner abuse and lifting the spirits of American soldiers."
He was accompanied by Air Force Gen. Richard Myers, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and some of the Pentagon's most senior lawyers.
According to The AP, they planned to meet the top U.S. commander in Iraq, Lt. Gen. Ricardo Sanchez, and other senior commanders.
This visit took place hours after new photos showing US troops brutalizing Iraqi detainees with snarling dogs or forced sex left members of Congress angry and disgusted.
In separate private screenings on Capitol Hill, House and Senate members watched photos and video Wednesday of Iraqi corpses, military dogs menacing cowering Iraqi prisoners, Iraqi women forced to expose themselves and other sexual abuses.
According to some lawmakers, the pictures included forced homosexual sex.
Some said they feared to release these photos.
Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., said, "It was significantly worse than anything that I had anticipated. Take the worst case and multiply it several times over." (Albawaba.com)
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