Bohemian Mama

The soldiers disarmed the Iraqi jailers, moved the prisoners into the shade, released their handcuffs and administered first aid. Lt. Col. Daniel Hendrickson of Albany, Ore., the highest ranking American at the scene, radioed for instructions.

But in a move that frustrated and infuriated the guardsmen, Hendrickson's superior officers told him to return the prisoners to their abusers and immediately withdraw. It was June 29 -- Iraq's first official day as a sovereign country since the U.S.-led invasion.

The incident, the first known case of human rights abuses in newly sovereign Iraq, is at the heart of the American dilemma here.

In handing over power, U.S. officials gave Iraqis authority to run their own institutions -- even if they made mistakes. But officials understand that the United States will be held responsible when the new Iraqi authorities stumble.

"Iraqis want us to respect their sovereignty, but the problem is we will be blamed for leaving the fox in charge of the henhouse," said Michael Rubin, a former adviser to the interim Iraqi government who is now a scholar at the American Enterprise Institute. "We did not generally put good people in."

"We want to know who gave those orders" to stand down, said Wyden, a member of the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence. Wyden spoke by phone Sunday from California, on his way to visit his mother. The intervention by Oregon Guardsmen, followed by their forced withdrawal, portrays "a very serious problem," he said.

Meanwhile, Oregon Gov. Ted Kulongoski issued a statement saying he is "extremely proud" of the Oregon National Guard soldiers serving in Iraq.

"I am honored by their professionalism as soldiers, their conviction about what is right and their basic sense of humanity," the governor said.

"I am very sorry that they had to witness these terrible events," Kulongoski said. "While war sometimes brings out the best in us, it also brings out the worst. I'm very grateful as an Oregonian that the soldiers of the Oregon National Guard knew the difference. I would expect nothing less from these courageous Oregonians who are serving our country."