German Prosecutor Declines to Pursue War-Crimes Allegations Against Rumsfeld

On February 9, 2005, a German prosecutor announced it would not pursue a request to investigate war-crimes allegations against him arising from the Abu Ghraib prison scandal. Larry Di Rita, a spokesman for Mr. Rumsfeld, said in a statement that the complaint was "irresponsible" and the decision to discontinue was "the right thing to do." The Center for Constitutional Rights, a New York-based civil rights group, and four Iraqis who alleged they were abused at Abu Ghraib, brought the complaint. The allegations were filed pursuant to a 2002 German law permitting prosecutors to investigate alleged war crimes no matter where they were occur...[more]