Some select clips from a news story. note even Iraqi's question why the pictures were released:
Iraqis Urge Calm Over Abu Ghraib Images
Feb 16 10:44 AM US/Eastern
By ROBERT H. REID
Associated Press Writer
BAGHDAD, Iraq
Newly released images of naked prisoners, some bloodied and lying on the floor, threatened to revive public anger over abuse by U.S. guards at Abu Ghraib prison at a time when tensions with the West are already running high in the Middle East.
The images were taken about the same time as the earlier photos three years ago that triggered a worldwide scandal and led to military trials and prison sentences for several lower-ranking American soldiers.
But many of the pictures broadcast for the first time Wednesday by Australia's Special Broadcasting Service, including some that appear to show corpses, were more graphic than those previously published. One of the video clips depicted a group of naked men with bags over their heads standing together and masturbating. The network said the men were forced to participate.
Some key Iraqi officials urged their countrymen to react calmly since the pictures were old and the offenders had been punished.
Iraq's prime minister on Thursday condemned the new images of abuse, but said those responsible had already been punished.
"The Iraqi government condemns the torture practices revealed through the recent pictures that show Iraqi prisoners being tortured," Prime Minister Ibrahim al-Jaafari's office said in a statement. It said, however, the Iraqi government welcomed the U.S. denunciation of the pictures.
In the Middle East, where there have been widespread anti-Western protests recently over caricatures of the Prophet Muhammad, Al-Jazeera and Al-Arabiya TV aired some of the Australian station's footage but refrained from using the most shocking and sexually explicit images. CNN also broadcast excerpts.
"There will be two kinds of reactions from Iraqis," she told The Associated Press. "One will be anger and others will feel sorry that they (SBS) didn't give them to the Iraqi government to investigate. Why use them? Why show them? We have had enough suffering and we don't want any more."
Pentagon spokesman Bryan Whitman said the Defense Department believed the release of additional images of prisoner abuse was harmful and "could only further inflame and possibly incite unnecessary violence in the world."
But another defense official said Army officials had reviewed the photographs posted on the Sydney Morning Herald's Web site and matched them to images that were among those turned over to military authorities in 2004 by a U.S. soldier.
The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to address the matter publicly, said the photos contained no new information about abuse.
Although the Abu Ghraib case was exhaustively reported here years ago, the new images could revive the issue of treatment of Iraqis by U.S.- led occupation forces, who face the ever-present threat of death or serious injury at the hands of insurgents.
Members of Shiite political groups opposed to the U.S.-led coalition appeared to have engineered that move. They were apparently seeking to exploit public sensitivities after attempts by the British to crack down on Shiite militias.
The new Abu Ghraib pictures emerged as the United States is trying to reach out to the disaffected Sunni Arab community, the backbone of the insurgency, in hopes of encouraging Sunni insurgents to lay down their arms and join the political process.
Mindful of the risks, some key Iraqi officials either avoided comment or sought to play down the images, noting the Americans had already punished Abu Ghraib guards.
Presidential security adviser Lt. Gen. Wafiq al-Samaraei called the abuse "unjustifiable" but added that it was important to remember that the actions occurred more than two years ago, offenders had been punished and rules on treatment of prisoners were tightened.
"The effect of something that happened two years ago is not the same as if it were repeated, for example, three months ago," he said.
However, they were consistent with earlier photographs of abuse by American soldiers at Abu Ghraib. Nine American soldiers _ all low- ranking reservists _ were convicted in the abuse and sentenced to terms ranging from discharge from the Army to 10 years imprisonment.
Whitman said more than 25 people have been held accountable for criminal acts and "other failures" at Abu Ghraib.
The network, which aired the pictures on its "Dateline" program, did not identify anyone in the images. However, several photos appear to show former Spc. Charles Graner Jr., who is serving a 10-year prison term for his role in the scandal.