Maine commander discusses guarding Abu Ghraib

PORTLAND – The commander of a Maine Army National Guard artillery unit that spent the past 11 months guarding Iraq’s infamous Abu Ghraib prison says the difference between loading artillery and protecting captured insurgents is like “day and night.”

“My [soldiers] are charged with caring for and protecting the very detainees who have likely sought to kill or maim American soldiers,” said Capt. Phillip Trevino of the 152nd Field Artillery, based in Waterville.

This duty is much more psychologically demanding, and some of the detainees are difficult to work with, Trevino, of Auburn, wrote in an e-mail to the Maine Sunday Telegram.

“Regardless, we continue to stress operating procedures in full keeping with Geneva Convention regulations,” Trevino said. “American noncommissioned officers ensure the safe, humane and consistent treatment of all detainees at the prison.”

The 152nd, made up of 128 men and women from across Maine, assumed guard duties at the prison last February after being retrained as military police. The unit arrived at Abu Ghraib months after abuse of prisoners occurred there.

“When some people back home hear we’re serving at the Abu Ghraib prison, they automatically assume that we were involved in the abuse of detainees,” Trevino wrote. “Not true. Unfortunately, some poor choices by a few soldiers in 2003 have tainted the overall reputation of the [military police] corps.”

Trevino said detainees at the prison are mostly cooperative and obedient.

“When they arrive, they aren’t sure how to act or what to expect,” Trevino wrote. “All are treated with dignity and respect and are given ample food, clothing and shelter.”

Abu Ghraib is located in Al Anbar province, one of the most dangerous parts of Iraq, and the prison remains a popular target for insurgents. A few members of the 152nd received minor wounds from mortar attacks last April, but none was seriously injured.

If all goes as planned, the unit is slated to return home in mid-February.