IRAQ PRISON ABUSE CHARGES SHAKE JORDANIAN VIEW OF

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 AMMAN 003406 SIPDIS E.O. 12958: DECL: 05/04/2014 TAGS: PHUM PREL ASEC PTER KISL IZ JO SUBJECT: IRAQ PRISON ABUSE CHARGES SHAKE JORDANIAN VIEW OF U.S. SOCIETY, VALUES REF: A. AMMAN 3388 ¶B. AMMAN 3380 ¶C. AMMAN 3329 Classified By: Charge d'Affaires David Hale for reasons 1.5 (b)(d) -------------- SUMMARY -------------- ¶1. (C) Shocked and consumed by heavy media coverage of the Iraqi prison abuse scandal, Jordanians tell us that the resulting damage to America's image in the region may be "irreversible." The bombardment of images of naked Iraqi men forced into humiliating sexual positions, as American personnel gloated, appears to be erasing for many Jordanians their only remaining justification for the war: the toppling of a dictatorship that ruled by fear and torture. The photographs have touched deeply a raw nerve in this conservative, religious society, and reinforce stereotypes of American immorality. Contacts worry that the scandal will have far reaching negative consequences for U.S. reform and human rights programs, and adversely affect security of Americans in Jordan. End Summary. -------------- STRONG GOJ CONDEMNATION -------------- ¶2. (C) Media coverage of the Abu Ghureib prison abuse story is intense and continuous (ref a). A front-page story for four days running, with repeated displays of the distressing photos in paper and on satellite TV, the Islamist press in particular has had a field day. Editorialists across the political spectrum have written that the images unmask the true nature of U.S. intentions and of average Americans. Official GOJ reaction has been limited, and many of our GOJ contacts have avoided discussing the topic with us. (Comment: We suspect that embarrassment at the subject matter and general Jordanian politeness in personal relationships has restrained many from expressing their feelings to us directly. End Comment.) Asked about the abuse allegations during a weekly press conference, GOJ spokesperson Asma Khader termed the pictures "shocking and revolting," adding that Jordan condemns and denounces these measures which violate human rights and international law. -------------- POPULAR REVULSION -------------- ¶3. (C) Former royal court adviser and political analyst Adnan Abu Odeh told POLOFF the abuse revelation is the most damaging hit to U.S. credibility since the Iraq war started. Reflecting earlier comments from security officials (ref b), he worried that it will do "irreversible damage" to important and badly-needed U.S. programs in the region, especially the Greater Middle East initiative. He said that U.S. officials must now conduct an open and wide-ranging investigation, but given the poor U.S. image in the region, people will naturally question the outcome. He said the humiliating images of naked and helpless Iraqi men -- who pride themselves on their toughness and manliness -- being sexually abused is the ultimate shame in Arab culture. He lamented the fact that senior U.S. officials had partially justified the war using human rights abuses at Abu Ghureib under Saddam's regime, abuses that the U.S. was now responsible for. ¶4. (C) One Western-oriented contact commented to EconOff that the appearance of female soldiers in the photos was particularly offensive. Contacts (without backgrounds in security) have expressed concern that these images have heightened the risks to average Americans in the region, including women. Piquing Jordanian concerns for Jordanian prisoners in Iraq, al-Jazira on May 3 aired allegations from a Jordanian student that he had been (less harshly) abused by U.S. soldiers while in custody in Iraq. ¶5. (C) As the lone dissenting voice we have heard, Jordan Chamber of Commerce official Yanal Bustami tried to give the U.S. military the benefit of the doubt, telling POLOFF that while the situation is regrettable, he hopes that the perpetrators are indeed a few bad apples and not representative of the U.S. military as a whole. -------------- COMMENT -------------- ¶6. (C) The fact that abuses occur in Middle Eastern prisons should come as no surprise to Jordanians; graphic confirmation that U.S. personnel engaged in abuse of such a degrading nature comes as a shock. While we imagine it will take time for Jordanians to absorb this story and come to conclusions, one early emerging theme is that the U.S. proved to be no better than the Saddam regime -- thereby stripping the one generally accepted justification for the war among Jordanians, the removal of a brutal dictatorship that tortured its people. A second emerging theme is to begin to question the sincerity of our regional reform agenda, or capacity to credibly promote it -- questioning we hear from reform-oriented contacts. Third, the security of Americans in Jordan is affected negatively, and already high anti-American sentiment further inflamed. Unsubstantiated allegations that "thousands" of Jordanians remain in U.S. detention in Iraq -- and in the view of many Jordanians could be suffering ill treatment -- may further fuel anger in Jordan. A prompt, credible, independent investigation may be the only way to reverse the damage. Visit Embassy Amman's classified web site at http://www.state.sgov.gov/p/nea/amman or access the site through the State Department's SIPRNET home page. HALE