Iraqi prisoners faced numerous "sadistic, blatant and wanton criminal abuses" by US soldiers, including sodomy and beatings, according to a US army report quoted by the New Yorker magazine.

The New Yorker said it had obtained a 53-page, internal US military report into alleged abuses at the notorious Abu Ghraib prison outside Baghdad. In an article posted on its Web site on Saturday, the magazine said the report had been authorised by Lieutenant General Ricardo Sanchez, the top US officer in Iraq, and was completed in February.

The May 10 issue of the magazine goes on sale on Monday.

The army report listed abuses such as "breaking chemical lights and pouring the phosphoric liquid on detainees; ... beating detainees with a broom handle and a chair; threatening male detainees with rape; allowing a military police guard to stitch the wound of a detainee who was injured after being slammed against the wall in his cell; sodomizing a detainee with a chemical light and perhaps a broom stick."

Written by Major General Antonio Taguba, the report said evidence included "detailed witness statements and the discovery of extremely graphic photographic evidence."

Pentagon spokesman Bryan Whitman declined to comment on the article, but said, "We take all reports of detainee abuse seriously and all allegations are thoroughly investigated."

The deputy commander of the US Army's intelligence force is heading an investigation into interrogation practices at the Iraqi prison, The Washington Post reported in its Sunday edition.

News of the military report came days after photographs showing abuse of Iraqi prisoners by US troops were published and broadcast around the globe.

The photos showed US troops smiling, posing, laughing or giving the thumbs-up sign as naked, male Iraqi prisoners were stacked in a pyramid or positioned to simulate sex acts with one another.

The publication of the graphic pictures of abuse involving British and US troops has thrown into disarray coalition plans to "win the hearts and minds" of the Iraqi people.

Many Arab media sources have reacted with rage to the photos in Western media showing the abuse of Iraqi prisoners by US and British soldiers.

The two key TV news channels in the Middle East, al-Jazeera and al-Arabiya, made the American photos their lead story on Saturday.

"The pictures released by the US CBS news network showing repulsive and immoral practices by US soldiers against Iraqi prisoners at Abu Ghraib prison have caused a great shock and dismay," al-Jazeera's news announcer said.

"If the photos were a shock to the world public opinion, the shock in Iraq and Baghdad in particular has been much greater," its Baghdad correspondent Al-Habib al-Ghuraybi continued.

"Iraqi citizens are very angry and ready to move at any moment. This may also hold true for the armed fronts," the correspondent said.

Al-Jazeera also highlighted the Daily Mirror's reports and pictures of abuse by British troops. Al-Arabiya TV reported that Britain was to launch an inquiry.