The Hooded Man

The Hooded Man
Abdou Hussain Saad Faleh, an Iraqi prisoner, being tortured at Abu Ghraib prison by U.S soldiers; the prisoner is standing on the box with wires attached to his left and right hand
Year2003
SubjectAbdou Hussain Saad Faleh

The Hooded Man (or The Man on the Box)[1] is an image showing a prisoner at Abu Ghraib prison with wires attached to his fingers, standing on a box with a covered head. The photo has been portrayed as an iconic photograph of the Iraq War,[1] "the defining image of the scandal"[2][3] and "symbol of the torture at Abu Ghraib".[4] The image, first revealed to the public on CBS's 60 Minutes II program on 28 April 2004, was later published on the cover of The Economist's 8 May 2004 issue, as the opening photo of The New Yorker[5] on 10 May 2004,[5][6] and on the front page of The New York Times on 11 March 2006.[7][1]

The man in the photo was initially reported to be Ali Shallal al-Qaisi[1][8] but the online magazine Salon.com later raised doubts about his identity.[8] It was later reported that although al-Qaisi was photographed in a similar position,[9] the actual Hooded Man was Abdou Hussain Saad Faleh, nicknamed Gilligan.[1][10]

  1. ^ a b c d e Morris, Errol (15 August 2007). "Will the Real Hooded Man Please Stand Up". Opinionator. Retrieved 30 September 2023.
  2. ^ Soussi, Alasdair. "The Abu Ghraib abuse scandal 20 years on: What redress for victims?". Al Jazeera. Retrieved 7 July 2024.
  3. ^ "'I hated myself for Abu Ghraib abuse'". BBC News. 9 May 2018. Retrieved 24 July 2024.
  4. ^ Fattah, Hassan M. (11 March 2006). "Symbol of Abu Ghraib Seeks to Spare Others His Nightmare". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2 July 2024.
  5. ^ a b Hansen, Lene (2015). "How images make world politics: International icons and the case of Abu Ghraib". Review of International Studies. 41 (2): 263–288. doi:10.1017/S0260210514000199. ISSN 0260-2105.
  6. ^ Hersh, Seymour M. (30 April 2004). "Torture at Abu Ghraib". The New Yorker. ISSN 0028-792X. Retrieved 13 July 2024.
  7. ^ Zernike, Kate (19 March 2006). "Hooded at Abu Ghraib, but not in the picture". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 13 July 2024.
  8. ^ a b "ID of hooded Abu Ghraib prisoner challenged". NBC News. The Associated Press. 14 March 2006. Retrieved 2 July 2024.
  9. ^ "Times admits error in ID of Abu Ghraib man". NBC News. 18 March 2006. Retrieved 7 July 2024.
  10. ^ "Photos from Abu Ghraib: The Hooded Men". Der Spiegel. 22 March 2006. ISSN 2195-1349. Retrieved 7 July 2024.