THE IRAQI PRISONERS OF WAR* By Ibrahim Naoum Ebeid

THE IRAQI PRISONERS OF WAR*

By Ibrahim Naoum Ebeid
The International Red Cross Committee was informed many times about the ill-treatment and torture of the detainees but no stand was taken by this institution. The INCRC kept silent.
The members of the legitimate leadership of Iraq succumbed to severe torture and inhumane treatment. The Martyred President of Iraq was mistreated and tortured, and the Martyred Vice President, Taha Yassin Ramadan, had to treat his wounds with water and salt: no one was spared the abuse. Some of the detainees died from torture or were deprived of medical care or good nourishment, such as Hikmat Ibrahim Azzawi and Tariq Aziz. Some became very frail and are dying in their cells that are not fit for animals, much less for human beings. All the prisoners in occupation detentions were transferred to the jails of the sectarian government created by the US and Iran to be lynched and eliminated.
Mr. Tareq Aziz, who was the legitimate Deputy Prime Minister of Iraq, was no exception. His health deteriorated rapidly; he was approaching his death in a small cell that, according to his lawyer, was not fit for dogs.
The cells in which the leaders of Iraq are kept do not see the sun, only darkness, and the prisoners are not allowed to exercise or see daylight for more than a few minutes a day.
Before Mr. Tariq Aziz died, his family appealed several times to the Vatican, to the Pope, and to many prominent Christian and Human Rights Organizations to intervene on his behalf to help his release, but there was no response. Not one organization, religious or otherwise, acknowledged the human cries of the family of this great human being, they did not respond to his agony and suffering.
I have seen many appeals from the families of the detainees asking the world, in the name of humanity, to intervene for the immediate release of their relatives.
The prisoners are old, frail, and sick; they suffer from chronic and critical diseases. Their families were expelled from Iraq and all of their belongings were confiscated. They became refugees outside of their beloved country. They are destitute and desperate. They are waiting for the release of their loved ones.
The prisoners were tried for resisting the occupation of their land and for saying no to the US-Iranian occupation. The trials were taking place for vengeance and the courts were supervised directly by Iran with US blessing and cooperation. How many times do we have to appeal to Human Rights Organizations, anti-war Movements, and the world to take a courageous stand against the war in Iraq, and to help release all prisoners and detainees? Do they have ears to hear our calls for help or does deafness fall upon them? Do they have eyes and can see the atrocities committed by the forces of sectarianism and occupation, or did blindness fall upon their eyes? Are they ignored because they are Arabs and considered “terrorists” by the Western World? Or has the world just slipped under the spell of the United States and Zionism?
We hope that the citizens of the world wake up from their slumber and pressure their governments, their anti-war movements, and human rights organizations to intervene to release all Iraqi prisoners and detainees and to stop the atrocious occupation of Iraq immediately. Iraqi Political Prisoners and the Anti-War Movement
The political prisoners in US occupation jails in Iraq have been suffering for decades, and they are being tried by the Criminal Court of Iraq, created by the occupiers, on false and fabricated charges and some have been unjustly murdered. There is a hidden and declared agenda behind all these trials. The agenda is sppecifically designed to serve the interests of the occupation powers, whether Persian or American and to rid Iraq of its leadership by any means.
These leaders who were tried, or are being tried, represent the finest of Iraqis who stood up in defense of Iraq’s independence and unity. Among those who were tried is Abdul Ghani Abdul Ghafoor whom I have known since the 1970s. I knew him as a writer and as a leader, an honorable man who was dedicated to serving his country to the best of his ability. Like the rest of the prisoners, this man is facing hostile and adversarial brutal actions and humiliation. He was severely beaten inside the dock by court guards and some employees under the sight of the court judge (Mohammed Al Khalifa Irebi), the prosecutor, and his aides.
The captive Abdel Ghani Abdul Ghafoor complained to the president of the so-called Supreme Judicial Council (Medhat Mahmoud), and the president of the court (Aref Al-Shaheen) about discriminatory treatment but he did not receive any response. He sought to transfer his trial to Egypt, or any Arab or Islamic country, except Iran, to ensure his integrity and safety.
The protection of the rights of the accused and maintenance of any tampering or abuse are openly violated. The court president, the prosecutor, and the court workers contradict the application of constitutional provisions and law because they violate the most basic rules and foundations, goals, and objectives.
During the session held on March 12, 2008, there was an attack on Abdul Ghani Abdul Ghafoor. He was insulted and beaten inside the courtroom by several guards at the instigation of the presiding judge and under the eyes of the court and the attorney general.
The court did not take any action against the attackers. As a result of the attack, the victim was severely injured and put under medical treatment for a month or so.
On April 15, 2008, Attorney General Mahdi Abdel Amir reiterated his hostile position to the regime of President Saddam Hussein and members of the government, claiming that his position on the men of the system was very clear. He berated the Iraqi leadership and the prisoners using repugnant terms. His tirade did not include neutrality and professionalism, which are paramount for an attorney general. On June 29, 2008,
Abdul Ghani Abdul Ghafoor was subjugated to abuse and humiliation by a person inside the hall. He filed a complaint to the President of the court, but no action was taken. This incident was captured on television. After the session, the same person threatened to assault him and kill him but a court guard intervened and prevented the man from harming Abdul Ghafoor. It was revealed that the attacker was sent by a sectarian party, which is part of the government of the “Green Zone,” to assassinate Mr. Abdul Ghafoor.
The political prisoner complained to the commander of the occupation forces about the actions of the court asking for protection. His request was not answered.
The place of detention is a basement under the court building, which has no ventilation and does not meet the basic needs of humans. It is solitary confinement, and it is used as a tool and a means to pressure, blackmail, and break the spirit of the detainees and to degrade morale and dignity to obtain confessions.
The trial has nothing to do with the political events of 1991, when the sectarian parties came from Iran, under the supervision of the mullahs and their officers, to murder Iraqis and destabilize the country. Most of those who attended the court for the purpose of the complaint, using false testimony, are members of the organizations who took part in these events. These sectarian organizations are now the rulers of Iraq under occupation supervision. They have committed crimes of murder, robbery, rape, and burning of state institutions, and should be the ones tried for treason and mass murder.
The sentences were already prepared to have the rest of the Iraqi leaders killed or have them die in jail. This is the plan of the occupations, both American and Persian, to rid Iraq of its leadership which is dedicated to restoring freedom, prosperity, and independence to Iraq through jihad and resistance.
It is upsetting to see the progressive parties, the human rights organizations, and the anti-war movement silent or openly opposing the legitimate Iraqi leadership.
Are these parties and movements part of the imperialist invaders of Iraq and do they share the aims of the occupation, to ruin Iraq and revert it to a “pre-industrial age” as the UN designated the nation in 1991? Most of these groups are all talk. They constantly criticize the U.S. foreign policy as heavy-handed and commonly use terms such as “imperialism,” yet they support the imperialists whom they denounce.
Isn’t it time to take a stand openly and courageously in support of the Iraqi National Resistance and recognize the role of the Ba’ath Party in the liberation of Iraq?
Isn’t it time to help release all the Iraqi political prisoners, and put a stop to the courts of death created by the US occupation, along with the Persians, to murder the leadership of Iraq?

Additional Note
We all were stunned and saddened by the abrupt announcement that Tariq Aziz had been condemned to hang. He was found guilty on bogus charges by the illegitimate court in Baghdad that tried various Ba’ath Party officials, including President Saddam Hussein. At that time, he received a sentence of 22 years in prison, assuring he would die before he again saw daylight. Tariq Aziz was a man of many skills. He was eloquent and represented the Ba’ath government internationally with great aplomb. Once imprisoned by the US, he was badgered into testifying against Saddam Hussein at the president’s equally phony trial. All he had to do was take the stand and make a few discrediting remarks about Saddam Hussein and he probably would have been freed soon after. On the stand, Tariq Aziz did not denigrate Saddam. In fact, he praised him and said he was privileged to be a part of the Ba’ath administration. He refused to capitulate when he could have saved his own skin.
Ibrahim Ebeid’s Response to the Announcement of Tariq Aziz Receiving the Death Penalty (October 30, 2010) The news of death sentences against Mr. Tariq Aziz and his comrades, Saadoun Shaker, Abdul Ghani Abdul Ghafoor, Dr.Sabawi Ibrahim al Hassan, and Abed Hammoud did not surprise us. These sentences took place to fortify the criminal policies of the occupying powers to rid Iraq of its capable and experienced leaders to rule and rebuild Iraq after the illegal invasion of 2003. The judge who passed the assassination sentence was very rude; the expression on his face indicated hate and a grudge. Three other judges refused to agree to authorize the sentence but they were forced to sign. We do not know even if there was a kangaroo trial or not, but for sure his lawyers only found out about the sentence through the news media. This is American democracy was exported through conquest and under the barrels of guns.
The members of the legitimate leadership of Iraq experienced severe torture and inhumane treatment. The martyred president of Iraq was mistreated and tortured and the martyred vice president, Mr. Taha Yassin Ramadan, had to treat his wounds with water and salt. No one was spared the abuse of the malpractice of US democracy.
Some of the detainees died from torture, deprivation of medical care, or adequate nourishment. Some became very frail and died in their cells that were not fit for animals, let alone human beings. Mr. Tariq Aziz, the legitimate deputy prime minister of the legal government of Iraq no exception. His health deteriorated very fast and he was rapidly approaching his death in a small decrepit cell. He suffered strokes. He had no teeth. He couldn’t speak clearly as a result of the strokes, diabetes, and lack of teeth. He was sentenced to death by a court established by the United States to eliminate the leaders of Iraq and all the brains that were behind Iraq’s political and economic progress. Thousands of scientists, doctors, and educators were killed or forced to leave Iraq, and Iraq was
left for imported criminals to master the art of killing and daylight robberies. Schools, hospitals, and all the institutions of Iraq were destroyed. Ignorance and illiteracy are spreading widely among the new generations of US “democracy and liberation.”
Tariq Aziz never held any administrative post; he was a diplomat representing Iraq abroad. He was brilliant and respected locally and internationally, and he was a victim who was marked for assassination by the sectarian Dawa Party of Maliki. He was wounded at Al Mustansiriyah University in Baghdad while other students were killed by members of Maliki’s party.
I had the honor to know Mr. Aziz and Mr. Abdul Ghani Abdul Ghafoor. They are intelligent, well-educated, and humble, and so are the others. They lived among the people and for the people and they sacrificed their lives for the liberation of Iraq.
Tareq Aziz did not surrender to the Americans, as the news media say, but his sister informed the Americans about where he was with the intention of saving his life from a heart attack he suffered. The butchers in Baghdad not only killed and tortured Sunni Muslims.
Muhammad Hamza al-Zubaydi, a prime minister under Saddam was tortured to death at a U.S. jail in Iraq on December 2, 2005, at age 67. By the way, he was a Shiite. Al Arabia TV broadcast a photo showing a US soldier stepping over his body.
Aziz remained in custody for the rest of his life and died of a heart attack in the city of Nasiriyah on 5 June 2015, aged 79.

Note* This article is taken from my book, AMERICANS, DUPED AND MISLED