Former Iraqi detainees claim sexual abuse, electrocution, beatings by US troops News
Former Iraqi detainees claim sexual abuse, electrocution, beatings by US troops

[JURIST] Two of eight former Iraqi detainees who are suing Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld [complaint, PDF] told ABC News Monday they were tortured while in US custody. The torture included beatings, electrocution with tazers, food and water deprivation, being shot with rubber bullets, and threatened with sodomy. One detainee who was housed at the former Republican Palace in Baghdad claims US troops attempted to coerce a statement by threatening to put him in a cage with a live lion. The American Civil Liberties Union [advocacy website] and Human Rights First [advocacy website] filed the lawsuit on behalf of the men in March [JURIST report], claiming that Rumsfeld and other US military officials were directly responsibility for abuses and that his actions violated the US Constitution, federal statutes and international law. ACLU Executive Director Anthony Romero said the Pentagon "basically told that this was a different type of war, and the rules didn't apply anymore." The ACLU has court documents and detainee profiles. ABC News has more.

THIS DAY @ LAW

Indian National Congress founded

The Indian National Congress (INC) was founded on December 28, 1885 in Bombay (now Mumbai), India. In subsequent decades, the so-called Congress Party would advocate for Indian independence from the UK, which was eventually achieved in 1947. The first Prime Minister of independent India, Jawaharlal Nehru, was elected as a member of the INC. Learn more about the history and founding of the Indian National Congress.

Congress recognized Pledge of Allegiance

On December 28, 1945, Congress officially recognized the Pledge of Allegiance and encouraged its recitation in schools. The Pledge was supposedly written in 1892 by Francis Bellamy, a Baptist minister, to celebrate the 400th anniversary of Columbus Day. The words “under God” were added by Congress in 1954. The revised version of the Pledge was the subject of litigation before the United States Supreme Court originally brought by Michael Newdow, a parent who unsuccessfully objected to his daughter's school district policy requiring daily recitation of the Pledge. The court ruled that Newdow had no standing.

Nepal ends monarchy, establishes republic

On December 28, 2007, the Kingdom of Nepal's interim parliament ended the country's monarchy and established the Republic of Nepal. Free elections were held on April 10 of the following year to elect a Constituent Assembly.

Learn more about the rise of democracy in Nepal.