The United States military has said the court martial of a US soldier charged with mistreating Iraqi detainees in a prison west of Baghdad is scheduled to begin on 19 May and will be open to the public.
General Mark Kimmitt told reporters that Specialist Jeremy Sivits faced three charges, including the maltreatment of detainees at the Abu Ghraib prison and conspiracy to maltreat subordinates and detainees.
He said the court martial would be held in Baghdad, subject to final approval.
Iraq benefiting from occupation, says Bremer
The US administrator in Iraq, Paul Bremer, has said Iraq is benefiting from the occupation, despite recent reports of abuse by American military personnel.
However, Mr Bremer admitted that the abuse had done what he called enormous damage to the reputation of US troops in the country.
The Americans have revealed that there were reports of maltreatment of inmates at Abu Ghraib prison as far back as January.
US President George W Bush has repeated his insistence that the scandal over images of prisoners being abused in Baghdad is the work of a few individuals.
In his weekly radio address President Bush said their actions did not reflect the character of the tens of thousands of American military personnel who had served in Iraq.
However, one of the military policewomen pictured at the Abu Ghraib complex, Sabrina Harman, told US newspapers that intelligence officers instructed her to, as she put it, 'make it hell' for prisoners to get them to talk.
Blair under pressure to respond
Meanwhile, British Prime Minister Tony Blair is coming under increasing pressure to respond to recent criticism of his government's response to allegations of abuse in Iraq.
Last night, the Conservative's defence spokesman, Nicholas Soames, called on Mr Blair to explain when he was first made aware of possible mistreatment of military detainees by British troops in Iraq.
A Downing Street spokesman confirmed that the government had received a report from the Red Cross last February which raised concerns over the treatment of prisoners.
However, he said the report remained confidential and details of the allegations, and how they were handled, were not yet known.
