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'Auschwitz-like' conditions at Dawood Mil. Hospital, Afghanistan
JohnThomas
By JohnThomas Didymus Jul 29, 2012 - 3 hours ago in World
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Kandahar - A Congressional investigation has uncovered "horrifying" details about a US-funded military hospital in Afghanistan in which patients were kept in what was described as "Auschwitz-like" conditions.
A US House subcommittee heard shocking testimony of conditions at the Dawood Miltiary Hospital in Afghanistan. According to Buzzfeed, the allegations include bribery and surgery without anesthesia. Top retired US military officials also made the grave allegation that there was an attempt to block the investigation into conditions at the hospital. According to Rep. Jason Chafetz (R-Utah), who chairs the House Oversight and Government Reform’s Subcommittee on National Security, Homeland Defense, and Foreign Operations, the standard of medical care at the hospital was one of the most "horrific, horrendous things I've ever seen." He said: “Allowing surgery to go on without anesthetics, gangrene, open wounds that aren’t being dressed.” Photos that emerged give a disturbing look inside the hospital and were compiled with sworn-eye witness testimony from three U.S. Army Colonels who blew the whistle on the scandal, Buzzfeed reports. According to the testimony, Afghan hospital staffers demanded bribes in order to treat patients and if staffers were denied payments the patients simply did not receive care. Chaffetz also said “there was an effort to not allow the inspector general to get in there because the generals and others on the ground really wanted a positive story coming out of Afghanistan, rather than solving the problem.” AFP reports the affair dates back to 2010, when US officers expressed concerns about the possible embezzlement of funds from the military hospital and poor treatment of wounded Afghan soldiers. According to Buzzfeed, there are currently two ongoing investigations into the Dawood Military Hospital scandal. The first concerns the Military Whitstleblower Protection act and the second, Caldwell's decision to delay investigation into conditions at the hospital until after the 2010 elections. RAWA.org reports that retired Army Col. Gerald Carozza, Jr., who as chief of legal development assisting the Afghan Army and Defense Ministry, said: "What this hearing should be about are attempts to over-control the message. It is about some leadership that puts the best foot forward and relies on the hard-built reputation earned by the military.” According to Buzzfeed, Lt. General William B. Caldwell, who was then commander of the $11.2 billion dollar a year Afghan training program, tried to block the probe into conditions at the hospital and ordered a cover-up. Another officer, Colonel Mark Fassi, who was then inspector general for training command, said Caldwell tried to conceal rather than launch investigations. The officer said Caldwell was "visibly upset" about the timing of the military inquiry into the hospital. Fassi said Caldwell's first response to him was, "How could we make that request with the election coming?" Fassi said Caldwell added: “He (Obama) calls me Bill.” According to AFP, several officers giving testimony said Caldwell encouraged them not to report the problems to the Pentagon inspector general. Carozza said: “The general did not want bad news to leave his command before the election – or AFTER the election... The general, like too many generals, was too concerned about the message, creating a stifling climate for those who had to deal with the reality." RAWA.org reports Caldwell was not invited to testify at the hearing. A spokesman for Caldwell, however, said he would “welcome the opportunity to respond to any inquiry” and that “all allegations will be proven false.” AFP reports that The Wall Street Journal cited an unnamed person with direct knowledge of the matter, who said Caldwell had in fact supported a probe but wanted Afghan officials to take the lead. The photos and descriptions of conditions at the hospital are graphic and were collected by US military personnel in Afghanistan, Buzzfeed reports. Colonel Gerald Nicholas Carozza, for instance, speaks of “Patients... lying in filth, in some cases starving and with grotesque bed sores. One patient was on the brink of starving to death." According to RAWA.org, this is not the first time US military commanders have been accused of "painting a too-rosy picture" of the war in Afghanistan. Lt Col. Daniel Davis, in a military journal article in February, said the war in Afghanistan was not going well but top military officers are misleading American people either "due to a misguided 'can do' spirit or a fear of repercussions within their chains of command." David said the lack of openness was creating a "credibility gap" making it difficult for citizens and lawmakers to decide if the war was worth the sacrifice. Davis pointed out that US military assessments often differ from those of other international military forces and were solely intended to "influence American and European public opinion ahead of the withdrawal.” He added, “I’m hardly the only one who has noted the discrepancy between official statements and the truth on the ground.” But Pentagon officials are saying there have been improvements since the discoveries at Dawood. According to Pentagon Press Secretary George Little, “I would point out that some of the problems we saw at the hospital have in fact been resolved, corrective measures have been taken, and patient care was improved as a result." But Col. Schuyler Geller, former Command Surgeon of the NATO Training Mission in Afghanistan expressed the opinion, saying that doctors and nurses who committed "unspeakable" acts still "walk the halls of the hospital...unrepentant, unscathed, and unprosecuted." Buzzfeed reports Caldwell is now running the U.S. Army North Command and is the senior commander of Texas’ Fort Sam Houston.
JohnThomas
By JohnThomas Didymus Jul 29, 2012 - 3 hours ago in World
Comments
Kandahar - A Congressional investigation has uncovered "horrifying" details about a US-funded military hospital in Afghanistan in which patients were kept in what was described as "Auschwitz-like" conditions.
A US House subcommittee heard shocking testimony of conditions at the Dawood Miltiary Hospital in Afghanistan. According to Buzzfeed, the allegations include bribery and surgery without anesthesia. Top retired US military officials also made the grave allegation that there was an attempt to block the investigation into conditions at the hospital. According to Rep. Jason Chafetz (R-Utah), who chairs the House Oversight and Government Reform’s Subcommittee on National Security, Homeland Defense, and Foreign Operations, the standard of medical care at the hospital was one of the most "horrific, horrendous things I've ever seen." He said: “Allowing surgery to go on without anesthetics, gangrene, open wounds that aren’t being dressed.” Photos that emerged give a disturbing look inside the hospital and were compiled with sworn-eye witness testimony from three U.S. Army Colonels who blew the whistle on the scandal, Buzzfeed reports. According to the testimony, Afghan hospital staffers demanded bribes in order to treat patients and if staffers were denied payments the patients simply did not receive care. Chaffetz also said “there was an effort to not allow the inspector general to get in there because the generals and others on the ground really wanted a positive story coming out of Afghanistan, rather than solving the problem.” AFP reports the affair dates back to 2010, when US officers expressed concerns about the possible embezzlement of funds from the military hospital and poor treatment of wounded Afghan soldiers. According to Buzzfeed, there are currently two ongoing investigations into the Dawood Military Hospital scandal. The first concerns the Military Whitstleblower Protection act and the second, Caldwell's decision to delay investigation into conditions at the hospital until after the 2010 elections. RAWA.org reports that retired Army Col. Gerald Carozza, Jr., who as chief of legal development assisting the Afghan Army and Defense Ministry, said: "What this hearing should be about are attempts to over-control the message. It is about some leadership that puts the best foot forward and relies on the hard-built reputation earned by the military.” According to Buzzfeed, Lt. General William B. Caldwell, who was then commander of the $11.2 billion dollar a year Afghan training program, tried to block the probe into conditions at the hospital and ordered a cover-up. Another officer, Colonel Mark Fassi, who was then inspector general for training command, said Caldwell tried to conceal rather than launch investigations. The officer said Caldwell was "visibly upset" about the timing of the military inquiry into the hospital. Fassi said Caldwell's first response to him was, "How could we make that request with the election coming?" Fassi said Caldwell added: “He (Obama) calls me Bill.” According to AFP, several officers giving testimony said Caldwell encouraged them not to report the problems to the Pentagon inspector general. Carozza said: “The general did not want bad news to leave his command before the election – or AFTER the election... The general, like too many generals, was too concerned about the message, creating a stifling climate for those who had to deal with the reality." RAWA.org reports Caldwell was not invited to testify at the hearing. A spokesman for Caldwell, however, said he would “welcome the opportunity to respond to any inquiry” and that “all allegations will be proven false.” AFP reports that The Wall Street Journal cited an unnamed person with direct knowledge of the matter, who said Caldwell had in fact supported a probe but wanted Afghan officials to take the lead. The photos and descriptions of conditions at the hospital are graphic and were collected by US military personnel in Afghanistan, Buzzfeed reports. Colonel Gerald Nicholas Carozza, for instance, speaks of “Patients... lying in filth, in some cases starving and with grotesque bed sores. One patient was on the brink of starving to death." According to RAWA.org, this is not the first time US military commanders have been accused of "painting a too-rosy picture" of the war in Afghanistan. Lt Col. Daniel Davis, in a military journal article in February, said the war in Afghanistan was not going well but top military officers are misleading American people either "due to a misguided 'can do' spirit or a fear of repercussions within their chains of command." David said the lack of openness was creating a "credibility gap" making it difficult for citizens and lawmakers to decide if the war was worth the sacrifice. Davis pointed out that US military assessments often differ from those of other international military forces and were solely intended to "influence American and European public opinion ahead of the withdrawal.” He added, “I’m hardly the only one who has noted the discrepancy between official statements and the truth on the ground.” But Pentagon officials are saying there have been improvements since the discoveries at Dawood. According to Pentagon Press Secretary George Little, “I would point out that some of the problems we saw at the hospital have in fact been resolved, corrective measures have been taken, and patient care was improved as a result." But Col. Schuyler Geller, former Command Surgeon of the NATO Training Mission in Afghanistan expressed the opinion, saying that doctors and nurses who committed "unspeakable" acts still "walk the halls of the hospital...unrepentant, unscathed, and unprosecuted." Buzzfeed reports Caldwell is now running the U.S. Army North Command and is the senior commander of Texas’ Fort Sam Houston.
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