Washington - The US Defense Department next month will release 44 photographs of prisoner treatment at facilities in Iraq and Afghanistan, in response to a long-running lawsuit over detainee abuse.

   In documents filed late Thursday, the government said that 44 photos would be issued by May 28.

   The court documents were released by the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), a non-governmental organization that sued starting in 2004 for the release of photos and other documents pertaining to possible detainee mistreatment and abuse at numerous military facilities in Iraq and Afghanistan.

   In response to a request under the US Freedom of Information Act, which allows private citizens to gain documents unless the government can prove specific grounds that the law allows for denial of access, the images to be released are from locations other than Abu Ghraib, the infamous prison operated by the US military after the invasion of Iraq.

   Private photos taken by guards inside Abu Ghraib depicted cruel and sometimes bizarre abuse of Iraqi prisoners, and the revelations severely hurt US international credibility in the Iraq conflict and on issues such as human rights.