US President George W. Bush has approved the demotion of Brigadier General Janis Karpinski, the former commander of the Abu Ghraib prison, to colonel, over the jail's abuse scandal, the Army said on Thursday.
   
"Today, the president approved a recommendation to vacate the promotion of Brigadier General Karpinski from her rank of brigadier general ... This decision reduces her to the rank of colonel in the US Army Reserve," the Army said in a statement.

Though Karpinski's performance of duty was found to be seriously lacking, the Army's investigation determined that no action or lack of action on her part contributed specifically to the abuse of detainees at Abu Ghraib, the statement said.
   
Karpinski also received a written reprimand by Army Vice Chief of Staff General Richard Cody and was formally relieved of command of the 800th Military Police Brigade on April 8.
   
The Army's inspector general investigated four allegations against Karpinski: dereliction of duty, making a "material misrepresentation" to investigators, failure to obey a lawful order and shoplifting.
   
She had been found guilty of dereliction of duty and shoplifting, according to the statement.
   
The Army also said it had cleared three more senior generals of wrongdoing in the prisoner abuse cases.
   
In the statement, the Army said more than a dozen other lower-ranking officers received various punishments. Three majors, three captains, two first lieutenants and two chief warrant officers were to be court-martialed.

The Army and the Pentagon have so far conducted 10 separate comprehensive investigations into military detention operations, and over 360 criminal investigations into allegations of detainee mistreatment, the statement said.
   
Allegations against more than 130 military members in the prisoner abuse scandal have been addressed through courts-martial, non-judicial punishments, and other adverse administrative actions, according to the statement.
   
The Abu Ghraib abuse scandal went public in April 2004, after photographs showing American soldiers mistreating and humiliating Iraqi prisoners surfaced. The scandal caused a widespread outrage, particularly in the Arab world, prompting President George W. Bush to apologize.

(Xinhua News Agency May 6, 2005)