MP’s Begin Tour of Duty in a Hell Hole

The 372nd military police were trained to support combat operations not to run a prison. To train them as prison guards at Abu Ghraib, they were told to put their weapons away and learn prison operations. Illogically, they were told training would take ninety days or less. There was not a time when the MP’s would feel safe, as the facility was constantly bombed.

They encountered a dreadful smell of a mixture of human excretions, sweat, and trash
With 130 degrees of desert, the men and women guarding the prisoners walked into a surreal situation that was a living nightmare. The MP’s saw Saddam Hussein’s torture areas, which included holes in the floor for hanging men, incinerators for burning bodies, and dogs digging up dead bodies.

In July-August of 2003 the prisoner population at Abu Ghraib went from 1,000 prisoners to 6,000, with only less than 300 military police guarding. Resources were not given in a timely frame, nor was there a logical plan for supporting and maintaining the prison in a productive manner.