US forces in Iraq have officially handed over control of Abu Ghraib prison near Baghdad to Iraqi authorities, US media reported Saturday. The facility, which was vacated weeks previously, was handed over to the Iraqis on Friday, the reports said, quoting Ali al-Dabbagh, a spokesman for Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki was quoted by dpa as saying. The Baghdad government was now considering how the institution could be used in the "best national interest."