CCR is proud to partner with the International Commission of Jurists and the International Federation for Human Rights to present a panel discussion featuring two Iraqi torture survivors, Salah Hassan Nsaif and Ali Shallal Abbas, who will share their first-hand accounts serious abuse suffered at Iraq’s notorious Abu Ghraib prison, and the role of U.S. contractors in that torture and abuse. 

CCR Senior Staff Attorney Katherine Gallagher will discuss legal cases, Al Shimari v. CACI and Saleh v. Titan, brought in the United States on behalf of victims as they seek justice. The cases will be placed in context of broader corporate accountability efforts, including those of the UN Working Group on Mercenaries and the Open-Ended Working Group on a legally binding instrument for corporations.

Speakers

Salah Hassan, journalist and photographer for Al Jazeera network and Abu Ghraib torture survivor

Ali Shallal Abbas, founder and president of the Association of Victims of the American and Iranian Prisons in Iraq, and Abu Ghraib torture survivor

Katherine Gallagher, Senior Staff Attorney, Center for Constitutional Rights

Carlos Lopez, Senior Legal Adviser, Business and Human Rights, International Commission of Justice (moderator)

Remarks will also be made by Patricia Arias, Chair of the UN Working Group on Mercenaries. 

Following the event, from 1 pm to 3 pm, there will be the opening of an exhibit at the United Nations seeking to uplift the stories of those most directly impacted by these human rights violations. You can find more information about “Private Actors in Warfare: Stories from victims of private military and security companies and foreign fighters” on our events calendar.

This event is cosponsored by the European Center for Constitutional and Human Rights (ECCHR).