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 | | From: | thelasian | | Subject: | Rumsfeld facing war crimes charges | | Date: | 22 Jan 2005 17:48:38 -0800 |
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 | Rumsfeld scraps Munich visit
Jan 21 08:30
DPA
http://afr.com/articles/2005/01/21/1106110909122.html
US Defence Secretary Donald Rumsfeld has cancelled a planned visit to
Germany after a US human rights organisation asked German authorities
to prosecute him for war crimes, Deutsche Presse-Agentur (DPA) learnt
on Thursday.
Rumsfeld has informed the German government via the US embassy he will
not take part at the Munich Security Conference in February, conference
head Horst Teltschik told DPA.
The US-based Centre for Constitutional Rights filed a complaint in
December with the Federal German Prosecutor's Office against Rumsfeld
accusing him of war crimes and torture in connection with detainee
abuses at Iraq's Abu Ghraib prison.
Rumsfeld had made it known immediately after the complaint was filed
that he would not attend the Munich conference unless Germany quashed
the legal action.
The organisation alleges violations of German legislation which outlaws
war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide independent of the
place of crime or origin of the accused.
The prosecutor's office in Karlsruhe reportedly is examining the
roughly 170-page complaint to see if an investigation is warranted.
The Centre for Constitutional Rights said it and four Iraqis tortured
in US custody had filed a complaint with German authorities against
Rumsfeld, former CIA director George Tenet and eight other senior
military and civilian officials over abuses at Abu Ghraib and elsewhere
in Iraq.
The organisation said it had turned to German prosecutors "as a court
of last resort" because the US government "is unwilling to open an
independent investigation" and had "refused to join the International
Criminal Court".
Several of those it wants investigated are stationed in Germany, it
added.
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| | From: | James A. Chamblee | | Subject: | Re: Rumsfeld facing war crimes charges | | Date: | Sun, 23 Jan 2005 03:08:21 GMT |
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> From: "thelasian"
>
> Rumsfeld scraps Munich visit
> Jan 21 08:30
> DPA
>
> http://afr.com/articles/2005/01/21/1106110909122.html
>
> US Defence Secretary Donald Rumsfeld has cancelled a planned visit to
> Germany after a US human rights organisation asked German authorities
> to prosecute him for war crimes, Deutsche Presse-Agentur (DPA) learnt
> on Thursday.
>
> Rumsfeld has informed the German government via the US embassy he will
> not take part at the Munich Security Conference in February, conference
> head Horst Teltschik told DPA.
>
> The US-based Centre for Constitutional Rights filed a complaint in
> December with the Federal German Prosecutor's Office against Rumsfeld
> accusing him of war crimes and torture in connection with detainee
> abuses at Iraq's Abu Ghraib prison.
>
> Rumsfeld had made it known immediately after the complaint was filed
> that he would not attend the Munich conference unless Germany quashed
> the legal action.
Now we have a Secretary of Defense who is afraid of being arrested in
Germany, a strong American ally, and the base of thousands of U.S. troops.
Rummy will probably never be able to travel to Europe again.
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