Seven American soldiers have been reprimanded in connection with the abuse of Iraqi prisoners carried out by guards at Baghdad's notorious Abu Ghraib prison, a top military official said on Monday.
On the orders of Lt. Gen. Ricardo Sanchez, commander of US forces in Iraq, six of the soldiers - all officers and noncommissioned officers - have received the most severe level of administrative reprimand in the US military, the official said, requesting anonymity.
A seventh officer was given a more lenient admonishment.
The military official said he believed investigations of the officers were "complete" and they would not face further action or court martial. However, the reprimands could spell the end of their careers.
Another six US military police are facing criminal charges.
Allegations of abuse at Abu Ghraib prison, on Baghdad's western outskirts, exploded onto the world stage this past week after CBS' "60 Minutes II" broadcast images allegedly showing Iraqis stripped naked, hooded and being tormented by their US captors.
An internal American Army report found that Iraqi detainees were subjected to "sadistic, blatant and wanton criminal abuses," The New Yorker magazine reported. (Albawaba.com)
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