Iraqis Had Two Dozen Torture Sites for Kuwaitis, U.S. Reports

Iraqi forces maintained at least two dozen torture sites in Kuwait city as part of a massive effort to subjugate the Kuwaiti people after seizing the country in August, 1990, according to a U.S. government report released Friday.

The report, compiled by the Defense Department and made available by the State Department, was submitted to the United Nations in accordance with an effort to document war crimes committed by Iraqis during their seven-month occupation of Kuwait.

It said 1,082 Kuwaiti civilians died as a direct result of Iraqi criminal conduct.

“The gruesome evidence confirms torture by amputation or by injury to various body parts, to include limbs, eyes, tongues, ears, noses, lips and genitalia,” the report said.

In some cases, family members were forced to watch as Iraqis murdered relatives. Mock executions also were carried out to inflict psychological terror.

“Victims were beaten, bones were broken, skulls were crushed and faces disfigured. Some victims were killed in acid baths,” the study said.

The report also documented Iraqi abuse of American prisoners of war. It said prisoners were routinely beaten, spat upon and forced to commit degrading acts such as urinating on the American flag. Some prisoners were tortured to gain military secrets.

The Iraqis, suspecting that Israelis were piloting American warplanes, sought to identify prisoners who were Jewish. The report said six Americans were examined to determine if they were circumcised.

State Department spokesman Joe Snyder said the report documents “the outrageous behavior” of Iraqi units in Kuwait.

U.S. military investigators also found that Iraq clearly intended to use chemical weapons.

Evidence included written and videotaped accounts from rape and torture victims, photographs of murdered Kuwaitis and videotapes of torture implements and burial sites.

“The transmission of this report reflects the firm resolve of the United States government to ensure that Iraq fully complies with all relevant United Nations Security Council resolutions,” Snyder added.

The New York Times reported last July that the Iraq war crimes report was stuck in the Pentagon bureaucracy for months, reflecting the George Bush Administration’s reluctance to pursue the issue.