Janice Karpinsky Brigadier General, Head of Prisons Country: USA

1. Brigadier General Janice Karpinski: A Controversial Figure
2. Karpinski's Confession
3. Israeli Involvement Alleged
4. Israeli Denial
5. Baghdad's Response and Karpinski's Vendetta

Brigadier General Janice Karpinski: A Controversial Figure

Brigadier General Janice Karpinski, the former commander of the infamous Abu Ghraib prison in Baghdad, has made a startling revelation: she claims that Israeli intelligence officers participated in the interrogation of Iraqi prisoners captured by American forces.

Karpinski's Confession

Karpinski's admission has shocked both the U.S. authorities and the Israelis. Washington and Tel Aviv have consistently denied media reports alleging the presence of Israeli agents in "liberated" Iraq. The reason for this is understandable: hatred of Israel in the Arab world is so intense that any evidence of "Zionist" involvement in the Iraq war - direct or indirect - could ignite an explosion of outrage in Iraq itself and in neighboring countries that the White House hopes to win over to its side.

Israeli Involvement Alleged

In Karpinski's case, it is not simply a matter of press reports that government officials can dismiss as "unproven, fabricated, or slanderous." It is the confession of an official who was personally present in Baghdad and to whom an Israeli could hardly have been invisible. According to Karpinski, an Israeli interrogator was questioning prisoners at a secret U.S.-built intelligence center in Baghdad. During one visit to the center, she encountered "a new individual who was being escorted by a senior coalition military officer." Karpinski inquired about the stranger, who she said looked Middle Eastern. He admitted to being an Israeli, speaking Arabic, and involved in the interrogation of Iraqi prisoners.

Israeli Denial

Predictably, the office of Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon has "indignantly denied" Karpinski's claims. However, few believe the Israeli assurances, particularly in the Muslim world. The governments of several Arab countries that recently declared their willingness to send troops to Iraq "at the request of the new democratic Iraqi government" are now in an awkward position. It turns out that their troops would be fighting alongside Israeli "invisible front fighters" against "Arab patriots" resisting the occupation.

Baghdad's Response and Karpinski's Vendetta

The new Iraqi authorities, who have barely begun to govern the country (albeit formally), have been slow to react to Karpinski's revelations. They are clearly in a state of confusion. Whatever their level of loyalty to the United States, the Baghdad leaders can hardly remain silent on this issue. The subject that Janice Karpinski has raised is too sensitive, the blow she has dealt too harsh. Collaborating with the Americans is one thing; collaborating with the Israelis is another. Iraqi citizens may not forgive their new leaders for this.

Karpinski's confession has been an invaluable propaganda gift to the Iraqi groups fighting against foreign occupation. It is also an act of exquisite revenge against the Pentagon and the White House. After all, Janice Karpinski is the highest-ranking military officer to have suffered as a result of the Abu Ghraib prison scandal. She was dismissed as commander of the prison, but Karpinski denies any wrongdoing. She claims to have been made a "scapegoat," forced to take the blame for the mistakes and misconduct of others. The Pentagon turned a deaf ear to her protests at the time. Perhaps the American generals now bitterly regret that decision.