Appearing on CNN today, Iraq's national security adviser said that Saddam Hussein's trial may begin before October 15 - which would coincide with the vote on Iraq's new Constitution.

The trial will be telecast in Arab countries.

In related news, one of Saddam's lawyers is asking that the trial be moved to Sweden for safety purposes. And Saddam has asked to be allowed to meet Ramsey Clark, another of his lawyers, but the request has not been acted upon.

This Reuters article in a South African newspaper calls Saddam's defense team "motley."

by TChris

Death and physical impairment are not the only consequences that befall our soldiers in Iraq. Many who return with no physical harm have nonetheless been damaged.

Thirty percent of U.S. troops surveyed have developed stress-related mental health problems three to four months after coming home from the Iraq war, the Army's surgeon general said Thursday. The survey of 1,000 troops found problems including anxiety, depression, nightmares, anger and an inability to concentrate, said Lt. Gen. Kevin Kiley and other military medical officials. A smaller number of troops, often with more severe symptoms, were diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder, or PTSD, a serious mental illness.

...

The 30 percent figure is in contrast to the 3 percent to 5 percent diagnosed with a significant mental health issues immediately after they leave the war theater, according to Col. Elspeth Ritchie, a military psychiatrist on Kiley's staff.

Among the many costs of this unnecessary war:

[S]such reactions can lead to problems with spouses and children, substance abuse and just day-to-day life, [military medical officials] said.

Sgt. Kevin Benderman was acquitted of desertion by a military jury today. He was convicted of a lesser "missing movement" charge and sentenced to 15 months.

Benderman failed to deploy with his 3rd Infantry Division unit in January, 10 days after he told Fort Stewart commanders he was seeking a discharge as a conscientious objector. He has previously said he refused to deploy to Iraq after his first combat tour during the 2003 invasion made him opposed to war.

Benderman's company commander and direct supervisor in the division's 3rd Forward Support Battalion flew to Fort Stewart from Iraq to testify Thursday that the soldier disobeyed orders to deploy and demoralized his fellow troops after they left without him.

Benderman's company commander said he got what he deserved: 15 months in jail for missing 12 months in Iraq.

While I think the sentence is too harsh, I'd say Benderman came out ahead: At least he knows he's not getting a death sentence, which is how a tour in Iraq might have turned out.

Background on the case is here.

The Denver Post has obtained documents from a closed military hearing of three Fort Carson soldiers charged with murder in the death of Iraqi Maj. Gen. Abed Hamed Mowhoush. Soldiers at the hearing testified that CIA officials beat Iraqi prisoners with sledgehammer handles. Three soldiers are facing murder charges in connection with the death.

CIA officials used a sledgehammer handle to beat various prisoners in Iraq, and one official, whose name is classified, would often brag about his abuse of prisoners, according to testimony in a closed session of a military hearing.

The transcript, obtained this week by The Denver Post under a court order, was of a March hearing to determine whether three Fort Carson Army soldiers should stand trial for the death of Iraqi Maj. Gen. Abed Hamed Mowhoush during an interrogation in 2003.

The Article 32 (preliminary) hearing of two soldiers charged with using unmuzzled dogs to abuse prisoners has ended:

The unmuzzled dogs also were used to terrify inmates at the direction of Col. Thomas M. Pappas, the highest-ranking military intelligence officer at the prison, and Steven Stefanowicz, a civilian contractor who directed interrogations, witnesses said.

A defense lawyer told reporters the approval went even higher as the Army tried to expand to the sprawling prison in Iraq some of the interrogation and intimidation techniques that human-rights advocates have criticized at Guantanamo Bay.

"They were trying to Gitmo-ize Abu Ghraib," said Harvey J. Volzer, a civilian attorney for Cardona, 31, of Fullerton, Calif.

A ruling is expected in about two weeks.

Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld is in Iraq. At a joint meeting with Iraqi PM Ibrahim al-Jaafari today,

Jaafari said it is time to work on acoordinated transition of military control in the country from Americans to Iraqis. "Firstly, we should quicken the pace of training the Iraqi security forces, and secondly, there should be a close coordination in planning between the US-led coalition and the Iraqi government on security transition," Jaafari said. "We do not want to be surprised by a withdrawal that is not in connection with our Iraqi timing," he added.

For his part, Rumsfeld said there is no exact timetable for the US troops withdrawal, but he also said "we confirm and we desire speed in that regard."

We wrote Sunday about Dick Cheney's personal visits to the Hill to lobby against the inclusion of an anti-torture Amendment in the Pentagon's 2006 spending bill. Today, Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist canceled the planned hearing on the bill.

Also, Timothy Flanigan, who also served as Attorney General Alberto Gonzales’s deputy White House Counsel in 2001 and 2002, during the time of the torture memos, is being promoted to the number two spot at the Department of Justice. Flannigan had his hearing today.

"Once again, while the privates and sergeants get marched off to jail, the policy-makers get promoted," said Christopher Anders, an ACLU Legislative Counsel. "This nomination means that the nation’s top two law enforcement officials at the Justice Department, which normally would be responsible for prosecuting any wrongdoing, will be men who are up to their eyeballs in this scandal."

by TChris

The military's use of dogs to "break down" detainees at Abu Ghraib prior to interrogations will be explored today in an Article 32 hearing regarding charges brought against the dog handlers.

Sgts. Santos A. Cardona and Michael J. Smith are charged with dereliction of duty and maltreatment of detainees. Both were attached to the 320th Military Police Battalion, one of the units guarding the now notorious Abu Ghraib prison near Baghdad in December 2003 and January 2004.

According to an investigation led by Maj. General George Fay, Cardona and Smith had a running contest in which they used their dogs to try to frighten detainees into wetting themselves.

The handlers say they were doing what they were told to do.

by TChris

Is the Army's public affairs office inventing quotes and attributing them to unidentified Iraqis? This is from a July 13 press release issued by the military:

"The terrorists are attacking the infrastructure, the children and all of Iraq," said one Iraqi man who preferred not to be identified. "They are enemies of humanity without religion or any sort of ethics. They have attacked my community today and I will now take the fight to the terrorists."

This is from a press release issued by the same office yesterday:

"The terrorists are attacking the infrastructure, the ISF and all of Iraq. They are enemies of humanity without religion or any sort of ethics. They have attacked my community today and I will now take the fight to the terrorists," said one Iraqi man who preferred not to be identified.

Either the unidentified Iraqi has memorized his speech, or the Army's PR team is recycling quotes, which may or may have originated with an actual Iraqi. Strangely, the words echo language frequently employed by President Bush.

by TChris

Cpl. Dustin Berg apparently believed an Iraqi police officer was going to shoot him, so Berg shot and killed the officer. Realizing that the shooting was unjustified, Berg tried to cover his mistake by shooting himself with the police officer's gun.

Berg, of Ferdinand, Ind., had changed his story multiple times during the investigation, initially saying the Iraqi had pointed an AK-47 at him to prevent Berg from reporting insurgent activity. On Monday, however, Berg said that Iraqi police officers as a matter of habit carried their guns with the barrels pointed slightly upward.

Berg pled guilty to a charge of negligent homicide. He was sentenced today to 18 months in prison. He'll also receive a bad conduct discharge.

Jane Fonda says she can't take it anymore. She's planning a bus tour to oppose the Iraq War. The bus will be fueled by vegetable oil. Fonda made the announcement in Santa Fe on her book tour.

Prompted by a question from the audience, Fonda said war veterans that she has met on a nationwide book tour have encouraged her to break her silence on the Iraq war. "I've decided I'm coming out," she said.

Hundreds of people in the audience cheered loudly when Fonda announced her intentions to join the anti-Iraq war movement.

The New York Times today reports on the case of Bronx documentary filmaker and four time Emmy award winner Edward Caraballo, convicted along with Jack Idema and Brent Bennett, after a farce of a trial in Afhanistan. Details from the trial are available here.

TalkLeft's good pal, New York lawyer Bob Fogelnest, represented Caraballo. Bob had gone to Kabul for two months, pro bono, to teach Afghan lawyers how to defend people under their new constitution. Bob is a great writer, and chronicled some of his experiences at his blog Mullah Bob.

Back to the Times article. Caraballo is serving his eight year sentence in Pul-i-Charkhi prison in Kabul. He is interviewed for the article, and describes his life in jail. He also describes his fellow prisoners and their, get this, adoration of Bush and America.