By Jacquelyn S. Porth
Washington File Security Affairs Writer

Washington -- Some 7,000 Iraqi prisoners were released from a U.S. internment facility in Umm Qasr May 8 while another 2,000 remain in custody, according to U.S. military officials in Kuwait City.

Most of the Iraqis who have been released were lower-ranking Iraqi Republican Guard or regular Army soldiers who "were initially captured during combat operations in Iraq," says Army Colonel John Della Jacono, who is deputy chief of staff for the Coalition Forces Land Component Commander (CFLCC).

"We are releasing those that we feel will be of a benefit to the Iraqi nation," he said, "because some of these guys could be future soldiers in the Iraqi Army that we plan to stand up in the near future." This is all part of "a deliberate process," the official said, to ensure that the right people are being released.

Della Jacono told reporters at the Defense Department -- by way of a telephone briefing -- that "a mix of people" is still being held in Umm Qasr, including 200 foreign nationals from nations such as Jordan and Iran. Those remaining include common criminals such as bank robbers, and unlawful combatants such as members of Saddam's Fedayeen.

A distinction is made between those Iraqis who fought for their country in uniform that are accorded enemy prisoner of war (EPW) status, according to Della Jacono, and those who took up arms but whose conduct was "not in accordance with the law of armed combat." The two groups are segregated.

Those who were released, which included some non-combatants who just happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time, were given clothing, food, and some money to take public transportation home, or they were taken to one of five locations in Iraq deemed to be closest to their hometown or point of capture.

Della Jacono said 3,781 individuals have signed parole agreements that they are required to carry with them at all times. Under the terms of the agreement the individual promises not to take up arms against coalition forces as long as they are in Iraq, and if they return to their former military unit they agree not to conduct combat activities. Violations may result in prosecution as a war criminal.

Army Colonel Karl Goetzke, the CFLCC's staff judge advocate, says broad efforts are underway to get the Iraqi judicial system up and running. Briefing reporters with Della Jacono, the official said extensive assessments have been conducted around Iraq "to find out the state of the court system." The idea is to vet Iraqi judges and other legal personnel "so that the Iraqi people will have the opportunity to once again function within a system of laws," he said.

Della Jacono also was asked about the 17 Iraqis now in coalition custody who were on the list of 55 Most Wanted by coalition officials. He said they are being held in a prison in Baghdad as a special category of detainees. Ghazi Hammud al-Ubaydi, a former Ba'ath Party Regional Command Chairman for the al-Kut District, is the latest Iraqi official taken into custody, according to the U.S. Central Command. The status of those on the list may be viewed on the Web at: http://www.defendamerica.mil/ira/iraqi55/index.html.

These special category detainees are undergoing interrogation and are being treated "with dignity and respect" according to the Geneva Convention, Della Jacono said.