US Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld said during a surprise visit to Iraq on Thursday that administration lawyers are advising the Pentagon not to make public any more photos of Iraqi prisoners being abused by American soldiers, a stance rejected by Democrats at home.

Rumsfeld said no government lawyers were recommending releasingthe photos to the public even though he would personally "be happy" to do so and "get it behind us," reports said.

The government lawyers argue that releasing such photos, which would certainly present images of prisoners viewed as degrading, would violate the Geneva Convention, Rumsfeld said.

But Senator Edward Kennedy, a Democrat from Massachusetts prefer to get the photos out. "The people want to sort of know about it," he said during an interview with NBC's "Today".

As for Rumsfeld's surprise visit to Baghdad, Kennedy said the defense secretary should have made the visit even earlier -- in January when the Defense Department was notified of the abuse by the International Committee of the Red Cross.

The United States has become "the most hated nation in the world as a result of this disastrous policy in the prisons," he said.

Democratic Senator Ben Nelson from Nebraska agreed that more photos should be released to the public.

"But I suppose if they're not released, you're going to have a concern that something is being covered up or not all is being disclosed," he said during an interview with CBS's "Early Show."

Senator Nighthorse Campbell, a Republican from Colorado, however, disagreed that more photos of abuse should be made publicat this time. "I don't think at this time they should," he said inthe interview with CBS's "Early Show."

"Some of them bordered on absolutely hard-core porn," he said.

Nelson and Campbell were among the lawmakers who viewed fresh photos and videos of Iraqi prisoner abuse on Wednesday, which theysaid included disturbing images of torture and humiliation.

Source: Xinhua