Tuesday, May 3 2005 07:56 Hrs (IST) - World Time -

Washington: US soldier Lynndie England, who featured in the shocking photographs showing detainees being abused at Abu Ghraib prison in Iraq, yesterday (May 2, 2005) pleaded guilty before a military court.

England, 22, who held a hooded, naked Iraqi prisoner on a leash in one of the photographs that drew word wide public outrage, entered her pleas to two counts of conspiracy to maltreatment prisoners, four counts of maltreating prisoners and one count of committing an indecent act.

In exchange, prosecutors agreed to drop another count of committing an indecent act and one count of dereliction of duty. If the plea is accepted by the Army Judge Col James Pohl, a jury of officers and enlisted soldiers will decide her punishment following a sentencing hearing expected to last several days.

The plea agreement, which came the day before England was scheduled to go to trial, lowers her maximum possible sentence from 16 1/2 years in prison to 11 years. Defence hopes it will be reduced much further.

England is one of seven members of the Maryland-based 372nd Military Police Company charged with humiliating and assaulting prisoners at Abu Ghraib.

She became a central figure in the scandal after photos of her surfaced. One image showed her smiling and posing with nude prisoners stacked in a pyramid while giving a thumbs-up.

In one notorious photo from the prison, England is shown holding a hooded, naked Iraqi prisoner on a leash. In another she is smiling and pointing at a naked detainee while smoking a cigarette.