BAGHDAD, Sept 28 (Reuters) - Iraqis expressed fury on Wednesday over the three-year jail sentence for Lynndie England, the U.S. soldier notorious for holding a naked inmate by a leash in Abu Ghraib prison, saying it exposed American hypocrisy.
They said the sentence would have been more harsh had she been convicted of abusing Americans.
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“America should be ashamed of this sentence. This is the best evidence that Americans have double standards,” said Akram Abdel Amir, a retired bus driver in Baghdad.
“There are Iraqis in jail without any charge, just based on suspicion. But when it comes to Americans, the matter is totally different.”**
She is the last of a group of U.S. soldiers to be convicted of abuse at Abu Ghraib, including her former boyfriend and the father of her child, Charles Graner, who is serving 10 years.
“If the abuse was committed against Americans I am sure the sentence would be much harsher. The sentence is nothing compared to what she has done,” said labourer Muntasser Abdel Moneim, 30.
The prisoner abuse scandal provoked global outrage and deepened Iraqi resentment of occupying U.S. troops.
In pre-sentencing testimony, England said she was sorry for her actions but remained an American patriot.
Iraqis remember her as the American soldier who held an inmate by a leash like the kind used for dogs, a highly degrading act because Iraqis and other Muslims regard the animals as unclean.
The images of a smiling England abusing naked inmates were especially humiliating in Iraq, a male-dominated society.
“The whole thing is theatre. The Americans want to pretend they defend human rights and are a civilised nation,” said Munir Abdel Sahib, a university lecturer.
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“I believe that England would not have committed these crimes without orders from above.”**
Amerikkan justice is a joke just like its racist government