- Graphic photos appearing on Arabic websites of U.S. servicemen
raping and sexually abusing Iraqi women were actually taken from American
and Hungarian pornography sites.
-
- Albasrah.net and a Tunisian website produced in France
by Committee for the Defense of Saddam Hussein [Comité de Défonce
de Saddam Hussein En Tunisie], posted not only the recently broadcast photos
of U.S. troops abusing and humiliating Iraqi prisoners but additional ones
of alleged group rape of women by American soldiers, some who are depicted
holding rifles against their victims' heads.
-
- The Tunisian site described the photos as the "unedited"
versions of actual events and Albasrah ran the photos under the heading
"The Abu Ghraib Prison Photos," indicating they had received
the photos via e-mail.
-
- A WND investigation has revealed that most of the photos
are taken from the American pornographic website "Iraq Babes,"
and the Hungarian site, "Sex in War," which is linked to by the
American site. Both websites are linked to by violent pornography sites
and both describe Iraqi women -- played by "actresses" -- in
vulgar terms.
-
- "Iraq Babes" was created in April 2003 and
is registered to Linda MacNew of MacNew Enterprises, in Hop Bottom, Pa.
-
- MacNew Enterprises also is the registrant of VelocityHosting.com,
whose technical and administrative contacts are Linda and Arthur MacNew.
HotSpotCity.com, which hosts "cheap unrestricted adult XXX porn websites"
is a subsidiary of MacNew Enterprises.
-
- MacNew told WND she hosted the site and that while aware
of the content, she did not know the photos were now being used as anti-coalition
propaganda.
-
- "That's one of our client sites," she said.
"If they're legal photos, I can't just shut them down because of that.
I need to investigate this. I appreciate you letting us know."
-
- When asked who the owner of the site was, MacNew said,
"I can't divulge that."
-
- "Sex in War" was created in May of 2003 and
registered to Activ Studio KFT in Budapest, Hungary, under the name of
"Andrea M." Andrea Marchand of Activ Studio KFT is listed elsewhere
as a custodian of age-identification documents for persons appearing in
various sexually explicit images broadcast over the Internet. Her e-mail
address is suffixed to Active Art Studio, owners of a Parisian website
and service that offers video content.
-
- At the time of publication of this report, Marchand could
not be reached for comment.
-
- WND also has not yet received a response from the Committee
for the Defense of Saddam Hussein and Albasrah as to whether they will
now remove the photos from the website and admit they are staged images.
-
- The photos published last week depicting abuse at Abu
Ghraib prison have enraged many in the Arab world, including the U.S.-appointed
Iraqi Governing Council.
-
- A military report by Maj. Gen. Antonio M. Taguba found
a pattern of wide-ranging abuse in late 2003, including the sexual assault
of a detainee with a chemical light stick or broomstick, according to the
New Yorker.
-
- Six U.S. military police now face criminal charges, and
Pentagon sources said the probe of activities at Abu Ghraib prison will
expand in light of the death of an Iraqi detainee at another prison.
-
- In addition, at least 112 women in the military have
reported being sexually assaulted by U.S. service members in Iraq and Afghanistan
over the last two years. U.S. Central Command is investigating the allegations.
-
- Experts speculate the actual number may be higher, as
the National Victim Center says only 16 percent of rape cases are ever
reported.
-
- In 2003, the Denver Post published "Betrayal in
the Ranks," an investigative report that revealed a reluctance in
the military command culture to punish crimes against servicewomen and
military wives, including rape to which the perpetrator had confessed,
gang rape, murder and attempted murder.
-
- Iraqi sources told WND that while they now understand
the rape photos are fake, they fear incidents of sexual assault and rape
by coalition troops may have occurred or could occur.
- _____
-
- Sherrie Gossett is a Florida-based researcher and writer,
formerly with the South Florida Sun-Sentinel, and a contributing reporter
to WorldNetDaily.
-
-
-
- Porn Site Depicting 'GI Rapes' Shut Down
- Follows WND Report On Bogus Photos
-
- By Sherrie Gossett
- ©2004 WorldNetDaily.com
- 5-4-3
-
- A pornographic website that said it featured "actors"
portraying U.S. GIs gang-raping Iraqi women has been shut down by its operator
after WND reported two Arabic websites were presenting the photos as proof
of American crimes.
-
- The American website, "Iraq Babes," was shut
down by its registrant, Linda MacNew.
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-
- MacNew released this statement to WND:
-
-
- I want to start by saying how appalled I am at this whole
thing. The site iraqbabes.com is one of our client's sites that we had
purchased for him as part of a hosting package that he ordered. Even though
we knew it would be an adult site, all content was legal content obtained
from a sponsor Extreme Traffic and listed in their 2257 statement that
all scenes in the movies and images were performed (played) by actors.
All actors/models were over 18 at the time of photography. And were paid
for their performances.
-
- MacNew added, "In light of the anti-American use
that other websites have found for this content, we have decided to sever
all business ties with this client and have removed their site from our
server. We want to thank WND for contacting us and making us aware of what
was going on."
-
- MacNew told WND she was not able yesterday to verify
conclusively that the photos, which she said were produced by the Hungarian
"Sex in War" site, were legal or illegal - meaning whether the
women involved were without question porn actresses or were actually raped
on camera.
-
- Earlier in the day, MacNew questioned WND about how the
photos were discovered, saying she thought it would be impossible to find
them because they were so deeply buried in the Internet. She expressed
shock that the photos came to public light at all.
-
- When asked why she allowed her name to be associated
the site, MacNew replied, "I had no idea something like this would
happen."
-
- "I'm very upset about it," she said. "I
have a very good name and a very nice business."
-
- MacNew Enterprises, along with the names Linda and/or
Arthur MacNew, is listed as registrant on various pornographic websites
ranging from "soft porn" to one which is much more explicit.
-
- MacNew said she was not following news on the war and
was unaware of the controversy over U.S. abuse of Iraqi prisoners in Abu
Ghraib prison.
-
- "I was all against the war to begin with,"
she said. Regarding rape, MacNew added, "That stuff happens over there
all the time anyway."
-
- Veteran police detective and novelist Michael Tremoglie,
commenting on the four websites involved and statements made by some of
the persons connected to them, said, "If there weres any question
in their mind about whether real rape was going on in these photos, why
didn't they contact the responsible authorities, instead of trying to cash
in on it?"
-
- Sherrie Gossett is a Florida-based researcher and writer,
formerly with the South Florida Sun-Sentinel, and a contributing reporter
to WorldNetDaily.
|
