U.S. troops suspected of human-rights violations
Atghan government officials
say the United States’ use
of force could turn Afghans
against the U.S.-led coalition
By Liz Sly
Chicago Tribune (KRT)
KABUL, Afghanistan — U.S. forces
in Afghanistan are committing a‘
range of human-rights abuses, includ
ing torture and the use of excessive
force, in their hunt for terrorism sus
pects, according to a report released
Sunday by Human Rights Watch.
The report cites numerous in
stances in which U.S. soldiers al
legedly used violent methods to ar
bitrarily detain civilians who have
not taken part in combat activities,
calling into question the quality of
U.S. intelligence.
In other instances, the report said,
U.S. forces opened fire on homes
before detaining suspects, some
times causing casualties among in
nocent civilians.
"U.S. forces regularly use military
means and methods during arrest op
erations in residential areas where law
enforcement techniques would be
more appropriate, the report said.
"This has resulted in unnecessary
civilian casualties and may in some
cases have involved indiscriminate or
disproportionate force in violation of
international humanitarian law."
A U.S. military spokesman rejected
the findings, saying the report failed
to take into account the nature of the
war in Afghanistan.
"1 think they have the wrong take
on the war," Lt. Col. Bryan Hilferty
said. "They're talking about arrests,
but we're not arresting people. This
is a combat zone, and we're a com
bat force.
"The report does not mention the
Taliban killing 15 people in Kanda
har in January, including eight chil
dren, and they don't mention the
Taliban burning down girls'
schools," he said. "They don't men
tion the work (coalition forces) have
done on reconstruction."
Human Rights Watch, which is
based in New York, said that in one
incident in July 2002, a man sleeping
outside was killed by a stray bullet
when U.S. forces stormed a house be
fore arresting its occupants.
Another man interviewed by the
group said U.S. forces stormed into
his home in the southern province of
Uruzgan, tied him up and then
pushed his two children, ages 11 and
13, to the ground.
"In front of my eyes, two Americans
laid down both the boys on the
ground and pressed their boots into
the children's backs. And they were
yelling: 'Where is the ammunition?
Where is the ammunition?'" the man
told Human Rights Watch. "The chil
dren were shrieking and shouting."
The man, who said he had fought
against the Taliban and had no idea
why U.S. forces raided his home in
February 2003, was detained and then
released after a couple of days.
Others have been held at U.S. de
tention centers for up to two years in
inhumane conditions without access
to family members or lawyers, and in
many instances they have been mis
treated, the group said. Altogether, the
United States has arrested more than
1,000 people in the past two years,
most of whom have been released.
Freed detainees told the group
that U.S. forces beat them severely,
doused them with cold water and
subjected them to freezing tempera
tures. Many said they were forced to
stay awake or to stand or kneel in
painful positions for extended peri
ods, according to the report.
"There is compelling evidence sug
gesting that U.S. personnel have com
mitted acts against detainees amount
ing to torture, or cruel, inhumane or
degrading treatment," said Brad
Adams, executive director of Human
Rights Watch's Asia division.
The group cites the deaths in cus
tody of three detainees, two at the
Bagram air base north of Kabul in De
cember 2002 and one at the Asad
abad air base in eastern Afghanistan
in June 2003. The first two deaths
were ruled homicides by U.S. military
pathologists, but U.S. officials have
yet to explain what happened to the
three men.
The deaths in custody are being in
vestigated, and U.S. forces have
"made changes to our procedures as a
result," Hilferty said.
The group also cites the deaths of
eight civilians, including six children,
in December when U.S. forces raided
a house in search of a Taliban suspect.
Tlie suspect was not there, but during
the raid a wall collapsed on a neigh
boring house, killing the family.
"The use of military methods and
tactics during the operation may have
violated international legal obliga
tions to minimize harm to civilians,"
Human Rights Watch said.
The group said it took into account
that Afghanistan is a war zone but
said that did not justify the abuses it
had uncovered by U S. forces.
"The Taliban and other insurgent
groups are illegally targeting civilians
and humanitarian aid workers,"
Adams said. "But abuses by one party
to a conflict do not justify violations
by the other side. This is a fundamen
tal principle of the laws of war."
The report comes as U.S. forces step
up their efforts to tame the troubled
eastern and southern border regions
where most of the raids described in
the report occurred and where a reju
venated Taliban guerrilla movement
has been active recently.
Afghan government officials fre
quently have complained that some
of the tactics used by U.S. forces risk
turning Afghans against their govern
ment and the U.S.-led coalition.
As part of the new strategy, U.S.
forces will spend more time in com
munities and will deliver more aid,
U.S. officials say, in an effort to win
the hearts and minds of locals who
otherwise may fall under the influ
ence of the renewed Taliban.
(c) 2004, Chicago Tribune.
Distributed by Knight Ridder/
Tribune Information Services.
Journalists from United States face violence in Haiti
Spanish television reporter
Ricardo Ortego died after
being shot in the chest
By Susannah A. Nesmith and
Richard Brand
Knight Ridder Newspapers (KRT)
PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti — The
gunfire came from all directions, from
down the street and from rooftops,
and it lasted at least 10 minutes.
When it was over, one journalist was
dead and another was wounded.
Killed was Ricardo Ortega, a Span
ish television correspondent, shot in
the chest.
Wounded was Michael Laughlin,
37, a photographer with The South
Florida Sun-Sentinel newspaper.
Sunday night, Laughlin was
awaiting evacuation from Haiti by
U.S. Marines aboard a medical air
plane, his newspaper said. Laughlin's
wife in Hollywood, Fla., was poised to
join him. She was told he could be
flown to Puerto Rico or Miami.
The ambush marked the first time
a foreign journalist was killed since
the Haitian uprising began last
month, though violence against jour
nalists is common in Haiti.
Human rights groups such as the
Committee to Protect Journalists have
warned that reporters are being target
ed in the Caribbean nation, where
several prominent Haitian newsmen
have been killed in recent years.
Those attacked on Sunday were
among a group of about six journalists
who were sticking together while cover
ing a large afternoon march against the
remnants of exiled Haitian President
Jean-Bertrand Aristide's government.
Blocks from the ornate National
Palace, the event quickly turned vio
lent, though it's unclear who was
shooting. But the journalists said they
felt they were the targets.
"Mike was the first to get hit," said
Peter Andrew Bosch, a photographer
for The Miami Herald who was in the
group. He said Laughlin was struck in
the shoulder, face and neck, the im
part knocking him to the ground. Fel
low journalists dragged him into the
private home of a good Samaritan.
"I kept him talking, got him
laughing. He was in a lot of pain,"
said Bosch, who administered first
aid to Laughlin.
Meanwhile, Bosch said, Ortega
waited in the house's courtyard. Sud
denly, gunfire came down from
above, "either from a rooftop or a
balcony," Bosch said.
Ortega was hit in the chest and fell
bleeding.
The reporters were not wearing bul
letproof vests.
Members of the group called the
U.S. Embassy to report the attacks and
ask for help. When none came, free
lance photographer Daniel Morel ran
outside to summon an ambulance.
"Daniel's the real hero," Bosch said.
The ambulance arrived after the
gunfire subsided and took Laughlin
and Ortega to Canape Vert Hospital,
where Ortega died of his wounds.
"Michael was doing his job, and
we're doing everything we can, in
cluding praying for his speedy and
safe return," said Kevin Courtney,
spokesman for The Sun-Sentinel.
Laughlin, who has shot photos for
The Sun-Sentinel since 1998, arrived
11.
in Haiti on Friday with the newspa
per's international and Hispanic af
fairs reporter, Sandra Hernandez.
He called his wife Saturday to re
port that everything was quiet.
"He told me, There's nothing going
on, but there's a demonstration to
morrow," said Kathy Laughlin, who is
a copy editor at The Sun-Sentinel.
"That's where it happened."
Laughlin has taken some notable
photographs during his career, in
cluding one on April 22, 2000, of
Elian Gonzalez being carried out of
his relatives' Little Havana home dur
ing the federal raid to remove the boy
and reunite him with his father.
(c) 2004, The Miami Herald.
Distributed by Knight Ridder/
Tribune Information Services.
to sketch architecture and public spaces. Learn
about materials and methods, have fun looking more
closely at the campus around you, and earn 2 credits
in the process. No prior experience necessary.
CJtN: 36030/36031
lime: l:0C-5:00pm
Credits: 2
115 Lawrence Hall
Instructor: Matthew Brehrrt
Garden shed at Hill H<
Charles Rennie Mackii
t the root of great architecture are the ide,
principles, and craft that shape ordinary mai
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