Abu Graib torture photographs 

There has been little Net discussion of the "second set" in AlBasrah, which came from CtDSaddam. www.leftist.org has the most detailed analysis. My conclusion (blue beret and spotted scarf - Serbian paramilitary) was that they might have a Yugoslavian connection.

My interest has been not so much authenticity but whether the dubious ones would spread into the papers and TV alongside the believed to be genuine ones. As far as the British media are concerned, only Channel 4 TV used the Bordeaux "placard" in it's original form alongside the Abu Graib torture set. Ryano's adapation of Boudreaux was the first I came across. When I saw the real Boudreaux on Channel 4, I was disgusted, and made it my business to try to source it. So I came to AlBasrah. It would be interesting to find out about CTDsaddam. As I have indicated, the only clue is the French Yahoo email adress. I wrote a test email but not unexpectedly didn't get a reply.

Overall, the papers and TV have not trawled the Web for pictures, or, if they have, they have been sensible enough to reject the ones they consider fakes. And no one - thankfully - has made the mistake of putting out the whole of the AlBasrah set.


5 May 2004

The Sunday Times (2 May, 2004) published the Boudreaux photo with the wording:

Lcpl. Boudreaux killed my Dad then he knocked up my sister!

The article it says:

"Military officials are investigating a U.S.marine reservist photographed with two smiling Iraqi boys holding a sign that says he killed their father and made their sister pregnant. Lance Corporal Ted Boudreaux, a reservist with the Headquarters and Service Company, 3rd. Battalion, 23rd. Marines, served in Kut, south of Baghdad between May and September last year. He claims the photograph has been doctored."

If he didn't write that, what did he write ? Or did his mates fix him up?

The handwriting on this photograph is different from that in the www.Ryano.net spoof site.  ¶ Tuesday, May 04, 2004