General reportedly rejects reprimand at Guantánamo

WASHINGTON — A military investigation into FBI reports of prisoner abuse at the U.S. naval base at Guantánamo Bay, Cuba, recommended that the prison's former commander be reprimanded, but a top general rejected the recommendation, according to a congressional aide familiar with the findings.

Investigators recommended that Army Maj. Gen. Geoffrey Miller be reprimanded for failing to oversee the interrogation of a high-value detainee, which was found to have been abusive, said the aide, who requested anonymity because the Pentagon has not released the report.

But Gen. Bantz Craddock, head of U.S. Southern Command, concluded that Miller did not violate any U.S. laws or policies and instead referred the matter to the Army's inspector general, the aide said.

The investigation also found that interrogators violated the Geneva Convention and Army regulations three times at the base, the aide said. But it found that interrogators' behavior did not reach the level of torture.

The investigation was conducted by Air Force Lt. Gen. Randall Schmidt and Army Brig. Gen. John Furlow after FBI agents' allegations of abuse at Guantánamo surfaced last year. The agents alleged that interrogators placed lit cigarettes in prisoners' ears and shackled them into fetal positions for hours, forcing them to soil themselves.

Craddock, Schmidt and Furlow were to brief the Senate Armed Services Committee on their findings today. The Pentagon did not respond to a request for comment.