It is reality TV of sorts, a show called ”Terrorism in the Grip of Justice.” It features detainees confessing to various crimes … and has quickly become a nationwide hit. It is on every day in prime time on Al Iraqiya, the American-financed national TV station… Those being interrogated on the program do not look fearsome; these are not the faces to be found in the propaganda videos that turn up on Web sites or on Al Jazeera. The insurgents, or suspected insurgents, on ”Terrorism in the Grip of Justice” come off as cowardly lowlifes who kill for money rather than patriotism or Allah. They tremble on camera, stumble over their words and look at the ground as they confess to everything from contract murders to sodomy. The program’s clear message is that there is now a force more powerful than the insurgency: the Iraqi government … The real problem with the program … is that it violates the Geneva Conventions. The detainees shown on ”Terrorism in the Grip of Justice” have not been charged before judicial authorities, and they appear to be confessing under duress. Some detainees are cut and bruised. In one show, a former policeman with two black eyes confessed to killing two police officers in Samarra; a few days after the broadcast, the former policeman’s family told reporters, his corpse was delivered to them.
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Iraqi special forces soldiers Ali Jabbar and Mohammed Ali insist they mete out justice fairly. They beat only the prisoners they know did something wrong, not the innocent ones. In March, when a rocket attack on one of their bases missed the target but angered the soldiers, they searched the area and found two suspects. “You want to know the truth? My arms are still tired from hitting those guys,” laughs Mr. Jabbar.
