Rumsfeld: Military, Not the Press, Broke Prison Abuse Story

By: E&P Staff Testifying before a Senate committee on the prison abuse scandal in Iraq, Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld said this afternoon, "The idea that this story was broken by the media is simply not the fact." He said it was the military that actually broke the story.

Questioned by members of the panel, Rumsfeld repeatedly asserted that public affairs officials with U.S. Central Command "told everyone in the world," as he put it on one occasion, that allegations of abuse were being investigated, first in January, and later in March, "when some criminal actions were initiated."

The January reference apparently pointed to a Central Command news release which read in full:

"BAGHDAD, Iraq -- An investigation has been initiated into reported incidents of detainee abuse at a Coalition Forces detention facility. The release of specific information concerning the incidents could hinder the investigation, which is in its early stages. The investigation will be conducted in a thorough and professional manner. The Coalition is committed to treating all persons under its control with dignity, respect and humanity. Lt. Gen. Ricardo S. Sanchez, the Commanding General, has reiterated this requirement to all members of CJTF-7."

"We told it to CNN, to the world," Rumsfeld declared. By implication, he seemed to be suggesting that the media had dropped the ball in not probing more deeply.

But Rumsfeld also told the panel that he "failed to recognize how important it was to elevate a matter of such gravity to the highest levels, including the president and the members of Congress." He blamed this partly on the fact that he did not see large numbers of photos documenting the abuse, explaining that words about severe mistreatment on the page do not carry the weight of "visual" evidence.

A number of Congressional leaders have expressed anger that they did not learn of graphic photographs of the abuse until they were broadcast last Wednesday on CBS News' "60 minutes II." Rumsfeld and top Pentagon aides met with lawmakers that day.