US chief heard abuse claims in January

US ADMINISTRATOR Paul Bremer first heard of allegations that troops were mistreating Iraqi captives at Abu Ghraib prison in January, a spokesman said yesterday.

The Red Cross claimed it had been warning of prisoner abuse throughout Iraq since the very beginning of the US-led invasion.

Mr Bremer's spokesman, Dan Senor, said he did not know when Mr Bremer first saw the photos of abusive acts. It was the pictures, not the initial announcement of the investigation, that ignited international outrage.