Witnesses Testify In Case Of Afghan Detainee Death

(RFE/RL) August 10, 2006 -- In the trial of the first U.S. civilian charged with mistreating a detainee during the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, witnesses have testified that they saw the civilian contractor beat an Afghan prisoner.

The witnesses include a U.S. soldier and a CIA interpreter who said on August 9 that 40-year-old David Passaro kicked the detainee so hard he was lifted from the ground.

They say Passaro also hit Abdul Wali repeatedly with a heavy flashlight during two nights of interrogation in June 2003 at Bagram Airfield north of Kabul.

Wali died soon after the interrogation.

(AP)