Camp Bucca to be shut down in 24 hrs

BASRA / IraqiNews.com: U.S. forces in Iraq will shut down Basra’s Camp Bucca and hand over its inmates to the Iraqi authorities, a Multi-National Force (MNF) official said on Wednesday. “We will shut down the Bucca detention center and hand over a total of 180 detainees to the Iraqi authorities within 24 hours…,” the deputy commanding general for the MNF- Detainee Operations, Brig. Gen. David Quantock, said during a press conference held at the camp today. “U.S. forces will leave behind facilities and equipment worth $50 million for the Iraqi forces to benefit from. These facilities include a brick factory with a capacity of one million bricks a month, a water desalination unit and an ice factory…,” Quantock noted. Camp Bucca is a prison camp maintained by the U.S. military in Umm Qasr, southern Iraq. The facility was initially called Camp Freddy and used by British Forces to hold Iraqi prisoners of war. After being taken over by the U.S. military in April 2003, it was renamed after Ronald Bucca, a soldier with the 800th Military Police Brigade and NYC Fire Marshal who died in the September 11, 2001 attacks. SS (P) 1