American on trial for private "war on terror" claims Rumsfeld link

[shraby]

KABUL (AFP) - A US citizen in court charged with running a private "war on terror" in Afghanistan (news - web sites) claimed he and two other Americans were working with the full knowledge of US Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld.

Jonathan Idema, who denies charges he detained and tortured Afghan citizens without US government consent, said they were hunting terrorists under the auspices of the Pentagon (news - web sites) and said they had since been abandoned by US authorities.

"The American authorities absolutely condoned what we did, they absolutely supported what we did. We have extensive evidence of that," said Idema, who is on trial with his subordinates Brent Bennett and Edward Caraballo.

US-led coalition forces have disavowed all ties with Idema, while international peacekeeping troops said they were duped into helping Idema's team, who wore US-style uniforms, believing they were legitimate special forces operatives.

(more)

<http://news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=1512&u=/afp/20040721/wl_afp/afghanistan_us_crime_040721150745&printer=1>

[Pallas180]

1. Good Schaby, Cause the rest of the "contractors" will see the abandonment

and then they won't trust that double dealing rummy and
he wont have that kind to use as martial law contractors here
at home.

I think this is the first time I have ever heard of the U.S.
Army/Pentagon hiring mercenary contractors to fight in an
American war.