Bulgaria denies Iraq abuse report

The Defense Ministry denied an international news agency report that Bulgarian soldiers might have abused Iraqi prisoners.
There is no information about Bulgarian soldiers involved in the abuse of Iraqi prisoners, Defense Minister Nikolay Svinarov said.

He reacted to copies of statements to Army investigators obtained by The Associated Press, which contain Abu Ghraib prisoners claims of abuse by troops from Poland and other coalition countries. Iraqi prisoners have alleagedly been beaten by "coalition forces" before arriving at the U.S.-run prison outside Baghdad.

The ministry will not require a special report on the allegations as everyday reports from Karbala provide sufficient information.

A nearly 500-strong Bulgarian stabilization force patrols Iraq's second holiest Shiite city of Karbala, 80 kilometers (50 miles) south of Baghdad, as part of a multinational force under Polish command.