Posted on: Tuesday, September 14, 2004

EDITORIAL
CIA 'ghost prisoners' hurt U.S. credibility

The latest revelations about the handling and treatment of prisoners held by Americans in Iraq add up to another blow to U.S. credibility and will further erode our efforts to rally the Iraqi people and the international community to our cause.

Military investigators have told Congress that the CIA held dozens, perhaps more, "ghost prisoners" at Abu Ghraib. This means, in violation of established policy, that the prisoners were held "off the books," unrecorded and unavailable to Red Cross monitors.

What was done with these prisoners? Under what conditions were they held? Who authorized this secret operation and for what purpose?

America's credibility in Iraq depends on our representatives playing by the rules. Incidents such as this leave the impression that we don't care about the rules when they are inconvenient.

That destroys our credibility and undermines our efforts. in Iraq

Congress should not rest until it has a full accounting of what transpired.