$25 and a Koran as inmates leave Iraq's Abu Ghraib
By Andrew Quinn
42 minutes ago
BAGHDAD (Reuters) - Clutching new Korans and given $25 apiece, about 500 Iraqi prisoners were released from the U.S. military's Abu Ghraib jail on Saturday in a goodwill gesture ahead of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan.
"I want you to go back to your families and say hello to them ... go back as good Iraqi citizens," Deputy Prime Minister Abed Mutlak al-Jibouri told the men, urging them to take part in a October 15 referendum on Iraq's new constitution.
"Don't listen to those who tell you don't vote -- vote! You are an Iraqi, and you have the right to participate."
The U.S. military agreed to an Iraqi government request to free more than 1,000 prisoners from Abu Ghraib in stages before the start of Ramadan around October 4, selecting detainees found by an Iraqi-led review board not to have committed serious crimes.
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http://www.radionewsamerica.com/index.php?blog=2&p=9145&more=1&c=1&tb=1&pb=1#more9145Editing to add my own comment: So basically what they are saying in our name is: "Here's 25 bucks and a shiney new Koran. Now run along and be good little muslims and stop hating our freedom." SHAME!!! Sorry, this one really curled my toes.