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November 16, 2005
Liberating the Iraqis -- by Burning Them Alive
It turns out that the Italian documentary was correct. Our military used white phosphorus to burn people alive in Fallujah. The BBC:
US troops used white phosphorus as a weapon in last year's offensive in the Iraqi city of Falluja, the US has said. "It was used as an incendiary weapon against enemy combatants," spokesman Lt Col Barry Venable told the BBC - though not against civilians, he said.The US had earlier said the substance - which can cause burning of the flesh - had been used only for illumination.
BBC defence correspondent Paul Wood says having to retract its denial is a public relations disaster for the US.
All together now... impeach this administration. Bush, Cheney, Rummy, and all the rest. I'll take Hastert as the president for three years if it means stopping this disgraceful and criminal administration from further dishonoring our great nation.
Here's the money quote from Colonel Venable:
"The combined effects of the fire and smoke - and in some case the terror brought about by the explosion on the ground - will drive them out of the holes so that you can kill them with high explosives," he said.
That's terror -- as in "terrorism". My God. What have we become?
Posted By Bob Cesca | November 16, 2005 10:26 AM | DIGG ME!
Comments
The UN Convention bans the use of incendiary weapons against civilans, not against humans. See for yourself:
http://www.icrc.org/ihl.nsf/FULL/515?OpenDocument
Of course any deliberate engagement or targeting of civilians is
already a war crime. so that the US has not signed this one is not of especial import except to say that we aren't bound by it expressly.
White Phosphorus is not banned.
It also isn't a chemical weapon. We are signtory to the Chemical Weapons Convention which defines chemical weapons. See here:
http://www.opcw.org/html/db/cwc/eng/cwc_frameset.html
So it isn't a chemical weapon and it isn't banned.
Indiscriminate use is. The stories circulating do not support that
contention. See here:
http://www.nctimes.com/articles/2004/04/11/military/iraq/19_30_504_10...
Bogert received the coordinates for the targets and recorded them on a map. This is proper procedure. He's receiving coordinates from a Forward Observer, indirect fire weapons never see their targets, the FOs do. The coordinates are plotted so that it is known what was ordered where. There is also a verification that takes place in the call for indirect fire to avoid problems with numerical transposition or other mistakes.
Posted by: RTO Trainer ![[TypeKey Profile Page]](http://www.bobcesca.com/nav-commenters.gif)
at November 16, 2005 12:26 PM
Theres a couple of great discussions about this over at DU.
Posted by: L3 at November 16, 2005 07:22 PM
