BAGHDAD, Sept 11 (Reuters) The first military intelligence soldier to be charged in connection with prisoner abuse at Abu Ghraib pleaded guilty to two charges at a court martial in Baghdad and was due to be sentenced later on Saturday.
Specialist Armin Cruz, a military intelligence analyst, pleaded guilty to maltreatment and conspiracy to maltreat detainees.
He is the eighth person to be indicted in the abuse affair, which provoked worldwide outrage when it broke in April.
As the first intelligence operative to be tried, Cruz's case is of particular importance. The Pentagon has said the abuse was the work of a few bad military police acting on their own accord, and not on the orders of intelligence officers.
But barring a courtroom surprise, Cruz was not expected to touch on the key issue of whether intelligence officers ordered military police to "soften up" prisoners ahead of interrogation, as some have suggested - a link that might indicate the higher chain of command knew about or even sanctioned the abuse.
Instead, his lawyer has said Cruz takes full responsibility for his own actions. "While his actions which bring him before the court were limited, he takes full responsibility, and in doing so accepts whatever punishment the court deems appropriate for his role in the incident," lawyer Stephen Karns said in a statement.
"He is extremely remorseful and has great sympathy for those who have suffered abuse in the prison."
<>In a report into the abuse by U.S. Army Major General George Fay issued last month, Cruz is identified as having taken part in the mistreatment of three prisoners at the jail and he has also been mentioned in testimony in another Abu Ghraib case.(http://www.sundayobserver.lk/2004/09/12/wor04.html)
