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US/UK WAR CRIMES AND FAILURES IN IRAQ
LATEST US/UK WAR CRIMES AND MILITARY FAILURES IN IRAQ
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IRAQ WAR WEBLOG OF FAILURES:
[ http://www.theinsider.org/mailing/article.asp?id=0334 ]
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BRITISH SOLDIERS KICK IRAQI CIVILIANS TO DEATH
Armed men from the UK force occupying Iraq were caught last week beating-up Iraqi civilians. Eight young Iraqis in the southern city of Basra were attacked so brutally that one of them died from his injuries.
These eight ordinary Iraqi people had apparently been kidnapped by soldiers for interrogation, and were unarmed and helpless in captivity. They were subjected to boot torture, an extreme ordeal which involves being beaten and kicked almost to death by soldiers with army boots. It is not known whether these beatings were carried out for a reason or just for pleasure in this case. It is possible that the victims were being beaten until they did or said something that the British authorities wanted. The soldiers probably did not intend to beat their captives to the point of death.
Nobody knows how often this sort of thing happens in Iraq. This might be a daily or weekly occurrence. We only heard about this instance because a journalist who was prepared to speak out in public discovered what happened.
The Independent (UK), "British soldiers 'kicked Iraqi prisoner to death'", 4 January 2004.
[ http://news.independent.co.uk/world/fisk/story.jsp?story=477915 ]
Eight young Iraqis arrested in Basra were kicked and assaulted by British soldiers, one of them so badly that he died in British custody, according to military and medical records seen by The Independent on Sunday.
The Independent, "'The British said my son would be free soon. Three days later I had his body'", 4 January 2003.
[ http://news.independent.co.uk/world/fisk/story.jsp?story=477908 ]
Robert Fisk reports from Basra on the 'death in custody' of the son of an Iraqi police colonel and evidence that he was savagely and deliberately beaten to death by British soldiers
The last time Lieutenant Colonel Daoud Mousa of the Iraqi police saw his son Baha alive was on 14 September, as British soldiers raided the Basra hotel where the young man worked as a receptionist.
Reuters, "UK soldiers kicked Iraqi prisoner to death - report", 3 January 2004.
[ http://www.reuters.com/locales/newsArticle.jsp?storyID=4068893 ]
LONDON (Reuters) - Eight young Iraqis arrested in the southern Iraqi town of Basra last year were assaulted by British soldiers, and one of them died of his injuries, a British newspaper said in its Sunday edition.
Baha Mousa's body was returned to his family covered in bruises and with his nose broken, after he and seven other men were arrested by British forces in September 2003 and held in military custody for three days, the Independent on Sunday said.
The newspaper said in its report by veteran Middle East correspondent Robert Fisk that it had seen military and medical records of the case showing that the father of two suffered his injuries in a severe beating.
British military authorities offered Mousa's family $8,000 in compensation, providing they were not held responsible for his death, but his relatives planned to take Britain's Ministry of Defence to court, the newspaper said.
A Ministry of Defence spokeswoman declined to give details about the case. ...
* * *
IRAQI CIVILIANS SUFFER "HEAVY RADIOACTIVE CONTAMINATION" FROM US/UK WEAPONS
Japan Times, "Ex-military doctor decries use of depleted uranium weapons", 22 November 2003.
[ http://www.japantimes.co.jp/cgi-bin/getarticle.pl5?nn20031122b3.htm ]
"The depleted uranium rounds the U.S. and British forces were believed to have used in the war on Iraq may have subjected parts of the country to heavy radioactive contamination, a visiting U.S.-based doctor of nuclear medicine has warned.
Asaf Durakovic, director of the Uranium Medical Research Center, an independent organization with offices in the United States and Canada, said his research team conducted a three-week field trip to Iraq last month. It collected about 100 samples of substances such as soil, civilian urine and the tissue from the corpses of Iraqi soldiers in 10 cities, including Baghdad, Basra and Najaf."
...
* * *
IRAQ WAR - 10,000 CIVILIAN DEATHS COUNTED SO FAR & RISING
Iraq Body Count
[ http://www.iraqbodycount.net/bodycount.htm ]
Min 7,898 Max 9,729 (rolling tally on 25 November 2003)
The Guardian (UK), "War may have killed 10,000 civilians, researchers say", 3 June 2003.
[ http://www.guardian.co.uk/international/story/0,3604,976295,00.html ]
[ http://www.guardian.co.uk/Iraq/Story/0,2763,976392,00.html ]
At least 5,000 civilians may have been killed during the invasion of Iraq, an independent research group has claimed. As more evidence is collated, it says, the figure could reach 10,000.
Iraq Body Count (IBC), a volunteer group of British and US academics and researchers, compiled statistics on civilian casualties from media reports and estimated that between 5,000 and 7,000 civilians died in the conflict.
...
ABC News (US), "At Death’s Door", 28 May 2003.
[ http://abcnews.go.com/sections/nightline/World/iraq030528_casualties.html ]
The Pentagon keeps a precise count of U.S. casualties in the war in Iraq. But the question of how many Iraqis lost their lives remains as mysterious as the whereabouts of Saddam Hussein or the location of all those weapons of mass destruction.
Marla Ruzicka, 26, from the San Francisco Bay Area, has been in Baghdad since the day Saddam's statue fell in the city center. She has been doing a headcount of the Iraqi injured and the dead. She's found more than she expected.
She has formed her own nonprofit organization, called the Campaign for Innocent Victims in Conflict, or CIVIC. She has organized 150 surveyors to fan out across Iraq. So far, they say they have documented 620 civilian deaths in Baghdad, 256 in Najaf, 425 in Karbala and as many as 1,100 in Nasiriyah. It is only a preliminary count.
"Somewhere between 5,000 to 10,000 people died in this conflict," Ruzicka said.
...
Evening Standard (UK), "US troops 'shoot civilians'", 19 June 2003.
[ http://www.thisislondon.com/news/articles/5401680 ]
American soldiers in Iraq today make the astonishing admission that they regularly kill civilians.
In a series of disturbing interviews which throws light on the chaos gripping the country, GIs also confess to leaving wounded Iraqi fighters to die, and even to shooting injured enemy.
...
* * *
US HOPES TO USE BRITISH TROOPS AS CANNON FODDER
The Scotsman (UK), "Fear UK soldiers may be flown in for GIs", 14 November 2003.
[ http://www.thescotsman.co.uk/paperboy.cfm?id=1259522003 ]
"FEARS were growing today that British troops could be sent to replace American soldiers in Iraq as President George W Bush tries to pull out United States servicemen in a bid to secure re-election next year.
Following talks in Washington, US Secretary of State Colin Powell said he wanted to see a local administration in place in Baghdad "as soon as possible".
And amid growing suggestions in Washington that the Bush administration wants to start pulling US troops out of the country within six months, Foreign Secretary Jack Straw acknowledged the UK was ready to send in more forces if necessary.
The discussions between the two men followed Mr Bush’s decision to call US civilian administrator Paul Bremer back to Washington for talks amid growing concern in the White House about the scale of US casualties.
And his aides believe US forces must be largely withdrawn before the presidential election in November next year to prevent a steady stream of "body bags" returning to the US and damaging his re-election chances.
* * *
US TROOPS KILL IRAQI POLICE WHO SAID "DON'T SHOOT"
13 September 2003.
Telegraph, "US troops kill eight Iraqi policemen by mistake", 12 September 2003.
[ http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml;?xml=/news/2003/09/13/wirq13.xml ]
American troops opened fire on a convoy of Iraqi policemen yesterday, killing at least eight in a devastating setback to the army's efforts to improve relations in the country's most hostile region.
A hospital was pounded by heavy machine guns and large calibre weapons during the incident, outside Falluja, in the "Sunni Triangle" where many remain loyal to Saddam Hussein and fiercely opposed to the American presence.
The episode ranks as the worst case of "friendly fire" since the war and will deepen anger and resentment in the town, where 15 Iraqis were killed when US soldiers opened fire during a demonstration days after the end of the conflict.
The Telegraph, "US troops ignored pleas as they cut down Iraqi police", 13 September 2003.
[ http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2003/09/13/wirq113.xml ]
Anguished pleas failed to prevent American troops firing for more than an hour on a convoy of Iraqi police yesterday, according to survivors of the worst "friendly fire" incident since the end of the war.
The incident in Falluja, in the notorious "Sunni triangle" ... began when police noticed a white BMW car, believed to belong to robbers who prey on traffic on the nearby highway, parked in the centre of town.
According to one policeman present, Nezar Rabiyeh, 23, they gave chase in five pick-ups painted in blue and white police livery. Other reports say there were only three vehicles, including one carrying a mounted machine gun.
The robbers, pursued by the police, ran into American soldiers, who opened fire. "They could see our cars were police cars," said Mr Rabiyeh. "We shouted 'Police! Police!' but it didn't make any difference."
...
Apart from the bloodshed, the incident is a serious blow to an American campaign to get on reasonable terms with local people.
The initiative was already under strain from another case of mistaken identity two days ago when soldiers caught in a roadside bombing shot at Iraqi policemen, killing one, south of the town.
Unlike at other police stations in Iraq, there is no American military police presence in Falluja to liaise between Iraqi and US security forces in the area - a circumstance which might have prevented yesterday's tragedy.
Local police said yesterday they resisted American attempts to persuade them to work together. "The Americans want the Iraqi police to co-operate with them, but our job is only to protect our town," said one officer.
"They want us to go out and chase the mujahideen, but we refuse. We know that if we go with them we will be hurt." The episode comes at a time when the coalition has been emphasising the value of Iraqi police co-operation in its efforts to improve security.
...
FURTHER READING:
Iraq War - Think It's Over?
[ www.thedebate.org ]
***
Iraqi kids threw stones so we "returned fire."
18 June 2003.
US troops shot machine guns into a crowd of unarmed civilians in Iraq who were exercising their legal right to protest about the [illegal] occupation. You can't "fire" a rock, so how do you "return fire" at kids throwing stones? Just ask any Israeli soldier.
The failure of the US-led occupying forces to manage the humanitarian crisis and establish order is a breach of International Law under the Geneva Conventions.
"They started picking up bigger rocks and throwing them at us," he said. "The guys on top of that vehicle returned fire."
[ http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/middle_east/2999594.stm ]
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WAR CRIMES: ALLIED ABUSE OF IRAQI POWs BREAKS INTERNATIONAL LAW UNDER GENEVA CONVENTIONS
1 June 2003
BBC News, "POW 'torture photos' investigated", 30 May 2003.
[ http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/2949282.stm ]
Allegations Iraqi prisoners of war were mistreated by UK troops are being investigated, after photographs allegedly showing the abuse were discovered.
A British soldier has been arrested on suspicion of taking the pictures, including one showing an Iraqi, bound and gagged, hanging from netting on a fork-lift truck.
Police were called in after the photographs were handed into a store in Tamworth, Staffordshire, for developing.
... such treatment would be a breach of the Geneva Convention which governs the treatment of POWs, says the Ministry of Defence (MoD).
BBC News, "Shopworker 'sickened' by POW photos", 31 May 2003.
[ http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/em/-/1/hi/england/2951888.stm ]
A photo shop assistant describes her horror at seeing images of Iraqi prisoners of war being mistreated by the allied invaders.
* * *
WAR CRIMES: BRITISH ADMIT ALLIES BROKE INTERNATIONAL LAW WITH ILLEGAL CLUSTER BOMBS WHICH KILL CIVILLIANS
30 May 2003
The Government admitted during the war on Iraq that the use of cluster bombs against civilian targets would "not be legal", a letter obtained by The Independent has revealed.
Anti-landmine charities claimed last night that the letter by Adam Ingram, the Armed Forces minister, proved that the Ministry of Defence had broken international law by using the munitions in towns and cities.
Mr Ingram admitted for the first time yesterday that cluster bombs were dropped on "built-up areas" in Iraq in an attempt to protect British servicemen. After initially denying the charge in an interview with the BBC, the minister said the unguided weapons, which release hundreds of bomblets, were used "in specific circumstances where there is a threat to our troops".
Richard Lloyd, director of the charity Landmine Action, said the letter, with yesterday's admission, proved the Geneva Conventions were knowingly breached. "Mr Ingram has admitted the Government acted outside the law," he said.
The Independent (UK), "Allied use of cluster bombs illegal, minister admits", front-page, 30 May 2003.
[ http://news.independent.co.uk/world/middle_east/story.jsp?story=410740 ]
* * *
WAR CRIME: US TROOPS SHOOT CIVILIANS IN PROTEST MARCH
30 April 2003.
Iraqi civilians protesting against the US occupation threw shoes and stones at the walls of a new US army base near Baghdad, and the US army bravely fought back against the demoralised third-world peasants with "bullets and shrapnel", killing some demosntrators and wounding many others. This is the second time in two days that a war crime of this type has been reported.
The soldiers set up their base in the local school, and the protestors were teachers and parents asking the troops to leave so their children can go back to school.
BBC News, "Protesters shot in Falluja", 30 April 2003.
[ http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/middle_east/2988823.stm ]
US troops have opened fire on protesters for a second time this week in the town of Falluja, 50 kilometres (35 miles) west of Baghdad.
Ahmed al-Taha, a senior official at Falluja's main hospital, said two people were killed and eight wounded during a march to protest against the deaths of 13 people on Monday night.
But witnesses who spoke to the Associated Press news agency said there had been no gunfire from the direction of the protesters.
* * *
WAR CRIME: AMERICAN SOLDIERS MASSACRE
29 April 2003.
US troops killed a number of Iraqi civilians protesting against the unwanted American occupation of their town. The US military claims their personnel were acting in self-defense, which is standard policy, but they reached this conclusion without holding any official investigation.
BBC News, "Iraqis killed in Falluja protest", 29 April 2003.
[ http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/middle_east/2984663.stm ]
Thirteen Iraqis were reportedly killed when US forces opened fire on demonstrators on Monday night in the Iraqi town of Falluja.
* * *
US GENERAL TO BE TRIED FOR WAR CRIMES IN IRAQ
29 April 2003.
A lawyer in Belgium, where the European Union is based, is preparing a war crimes case under International Law against the American general responsible for operations in the invasion of Iraq.
BBC News, "US anger at war crimes threat", 29 April 2003.
[ http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/middle_east/2983911.stm ]
The Bush administration has reacted angrily to suggestions that General Tommy Franks, the commander of the US-led war in Iraq, might be charged with war crimes.
The row erupted after a Brussels lawyer gave an interview to American newspapers in which he said he was aiming to file a case next week on behalf of 10 Iraqi civilians alleging among other things that General Franks did nothing to stop the looting of hospitals in Baghdad [while they secured the Oil Exchange in central Baghdad and also the also the oil fields] and that coalition forces fired on an ambulance [and fired on civilians in numerous incidents].
* * *
WAR CRIME: US TROOPS MASSACRE CIVILIAN PROTESTORS
15 April 2003.
US troops fired into a crowd of civilians protesting against the American occupation of Iraq, massacring at least twelve people and injuring at least sixteen others.
Most people in Iraq do not want the US government involved in deciding the future of thweir country, and there is growing evidence that the famous scenes of Iraqis celebrating the invasion broadcast by Western television channels were produced artificially at a custom-built film set:
[ http://dc.indymedia.org/front.php3?article_id=63743&group=webcast ]
The Guardian, "Riots greet would-be leader of Mosul", 16 April 2003.
[ http://www.guardian.co.uk/international/story/0,3604,937603,00.html ]
A US marine officer last night confirmed there had been a gun battle lasting about 15 minutes after US forces came under attack from elements within the crowd. They returned with "accurate fire".
“It is wrong to ignore the large majority of Iraqis who have endured great suffering and suppression under the last regime,” the statement read out by a cleric said. “We reject any decisions which come out of this conference because it does not represent us, the majority of Iraqi people.”
BBC News, "US troops fired on crowd", 16 April 2003.
[ http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/middle_east/2951789.stm ]
Witnesses said US troops fired into a crowd growing increasingly hostile to a speech being given by the town's newly appointed governor.
REPORTED CIVILIAN DEATHS TO DATE
TOTAL: 1,402 - 1,817 at least (and counting)
[ http://www.iraqbodycount.net/bodycount.htm ]
* * *
WAR CRIMES: US MARINES KILL IRAQI CHILDREN AT CHECK-POINT
11 April 2003.
Two more Iraqi families, including children, have been shot dead by US Marines. This is inexcusable, because they cannot expect Iraqi civilians to understand until they start using signs in Arabic. The US Marine Corps mainly recruits teenagers, and in this incident the young American soldiers ordered the Iraqi family to stop before they killed them - in English!
BBC News, "Iraq latest: At-a-glance", 11 April 2003.
[ http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/middle_east/2938181.stm ]
0723: Two Iraqi children have been shot dead by US marines at a checkpoint in Nasiriya; nine other Iraqis were injured when the marines shot at a car which failed to stop, the BBC's Adam Mynott reports.
* * *
SANITISED IMAGES OF IRAQ FROM BRITISH GOVERNMENT-OWNED MEDIA:
BBC News, "In pictures: Human cost of war", 10 April 2003.
[ http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/in_depth/photo_gallery/2935669.stm ]
HORRIFIC PICTURES - WAR SUPPORTERS PREFER NOT TO SEE:
IRAQI CIVILIAN CASUALTIES - PICTURES WITH CAPTIONS
"Shock and awe", American style:
[ http://www.marchforjustice.com/id191.htm ]
* * *
WAR CRIMES: US ARMY TARGET HOTEL AND ARAB MEDIA OFFICES
9 April 2003.
The US army is using terror tactics to scare away journalists which aren't under their control. Unfortunately a number of journalists were killed today when American soldiers fired artillery at an 18-floor hotel in Baghdad used mainly by foreign journalists. The US government would rather the world did not see the unfolding atrocities and war crimes perpetrated under their command.
Washington Post, "3 Journalists Killed By U.S. Strikes", 9 April 2003.
[ http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A59837-2003Apr8.html ]
"U.S. troops fired a tank round today at the 18-story Palestine Hotel in central Baghdad that houses most foreign journalists, killing two cameramen and wounding three others, two of them seriously."
"A reporter for the pan-Arab network al-Jazeera was killed earlier in the day in a U.S. strike on its bureau here."
* * *
WAR CRIMES: THOUSANDS OF IRAQI CIVILIANS SLAUGHTERED
9 April 2003
Thousands of innocent Iraqi civilians are being slaughtered every day, while the British and American media portray false images of an easy victory.
The fighting in this busy city is growing increasingly fierce and furious as Iraqi fighters fight to the death defending their homeland against a massive invasion by American and British forces. The streets of Baghdad are lined with mangled bloody bodies, their skin and flesh ripped to pieces by bombs and bullets.
In the UK today, front-page of The Guardian newspaper showed a pile of people, unrecognisable as individuals, their smashed bodies mangled together in a mass of shredded limbs, hands, feet, and other body parts.
This is shock and awe, American-style, and the rest of the world is disgusted.
It's easy to support war from the comfort of your chair.
The Guardian (UK), "A picture of killing inflicted on a sprawling city - and it grew more unbearable by the minute", front-page, 9 April 2003.
[ http://www.guardian.co.uk/international/story/0,3604,932728,00.html ]
Death's embrace gave the bodies intimacies they never knew in life. Strangers, bloodied and blackened, wrapped their arms around others, hugging them close.
A man's hand rose disembodied from the bottom of the heap of corpses to rest on the belly of a man near the top. A blue stone in his ring glinted as an Iraqi orderly opened the door of the morgue, admitting daylight and the sound of a man's sobs to the cold silence within.
Here were just some of the results of America's progress through Saddam Hussein's dominions yesterday, an advance that obliterated the symbols of his regime at the same time as it claimed to be liberating its people.
These were mere fragments in a larger picture of killing, flight, and destruction inflicted on a sprawling city of 5 million. And it grew more unbearable by the minute.
* * *
WAR CRIME: LASER-GUIDED US BOMB KILLS MORE CIVILIANS IN AFGHANISTAN
9 April 2003
A supposedly accurate laser-guided American weapon hit a crowd of innocent people in Afghanistan. It was a direct-hit from a massive thousand-pound bomb, and 11 civilians were mangled to death in the explosion, while others were seriously injured as red-hot shrapnel tore through their flesh and splintered their bones.
BBC News, "US bomb kills Afghan civilians", 9 April 2003.
[ http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/south_asia/2931297.stm ]
The US military in Afghanistan says it has killed 11 Afghan civilians by mistake in an air attack.
The eleven dead civilians comprised seven men and four women, spokesman Lefforge said.
The Guardian (UK), "US bomb kills 11 Afghan civilians", 9 April 2003.
[ http://www.guardian.co.uk/afghanistan/story/0,1284,932898,00.html ]
One of the planes dropped a 450kg laser-guided bomb, but it missed its intended target, the military said.
* * *
WAR CRIMES: MORE CIVILIAN JOURNALISTS KILLED BY US TROOPS
8 April 2003.
There are calls for an inquiry after three more journalists are killed in Iraq, bringing the media death toll to 12.
BBC News, "Outcry over journalists' deaths", 8 April 2003.
[ http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/middle_east/2928153.stm ]
Two cameramen - who worked for the Reuters news agency and Spain's Telecinco - died when a shell or missile hit the Palestine hotel.
Initially, US military officials expressed regret at the Palestine hotel incident, saying one of their tanks had fired on the building in response to sniper and rocket fire.
A third journalist was killed when a US missile hit the offices of al-Jazeera TV.
* * *
FRIENDLY FIRE: US BOMBS OWN SPECIAL FORCES, KURDISH ALLIES, AND BRITISH REPORTERS
6 April 2003
An American warplane has bombed a Kurdish convoy in northern Iraq which had been joined by members of US special forces, killing several people.
BBC News, "'Friendly fire' hits Kurdish convoy", 6 April 2003.
[ http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/middle_east/2921743.stm ]
BBC News, "'This is just a scene from hell'", 6 April 2003.
[ http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/middle_east/2921807.stm ]
* * *
MISTAKE: US MARINES SHOOT RUSSIAN DIPLOMATIC ENVOY IN IRAQ
6 April 2003.
Russian media reported that two bullets from the stomach of one victim came from an M-16 semi-automatic assault rifle, used by US marines.
Moscow Times, "Diplomats' Convoy Comes Under Fire", 7 April 2003.
[ http://www.themoscowtimes.com/stories/2003/04/07/002.html ]
A convoy carrying Russia's ambassador to Iraq and about two dozen
Russian diplomats and journalists came under heavy fire Sunday
while evacuating from Baghdad. Five diplomats were wounded, but
none of their lives was said to be in danger.
BBC News, "Russian envoys 'caught in crossfire'", 7 April 2003.
[ http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/europe/2922117.stm ]
* * *
LIES: US TROOPS WERE NOT IN CENTRAL BAGHDAD ON SATURDAY 5TH APRIL.
5 April 2003
The US military repeatedly claimed this morning that American troops were "in the centre of Baghdad," and "the no kidding centre." Later this propaganda turned out to be untrue and the closest they came to the centre was the al-Jeer district just within the borders of the city.
Washington Post, "U.S. Forces Probing Inside Baghdad ", 5 April 2003.
[ http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A31895-2003Apr4.html ]
U.S. Army troops and armored vehicles entered Baghdad this morning for the first time, probing the southernmost neighborhoods of an Iraqi capital now ringed by U.S. forces.
BBC News, "Reporters' Log: War in Iraq", 5 April 2003.
[ http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/2920019.stm ]
1104 There is clearly something going on, but not in the centre as the Americans have said, but out on the outskirts of Baghdad.
BBC News, "Reporters' Log: War in Iraq", 5 April 2003.
[ http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/2919797.stm ]
0845 GMT US spokesmen say they have reached central Baghdad, they are claiming it's more than a patrol that goes in and out. But in this part of the centre we've seen no sign of the Americans.
Washington Post, "U.S. Forces Enter the Heart of Baghdad", 7 April 2003.
[ http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A33016-2003Apr5.html ]
An Army column of Abrams tanks and Bradley fighting vehicles made the first major U.S. incursion into Baghdad this morning, driving through the middle of the city...
* * *
ACCIDENT: MORE US TROOPS KILLED BY FRIENDLY FIRE ACCIDENTS
4 April 2003.
BBC News, "Reporters' Log: War in Iraq", 4 April 2003.
[ http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/2914927.stm ]
A soldier from the US 5th Corps was killed on Thursday afternoon in central Iraq.
He had been close to and examining a destroyed Iraqi tank when colleagues who were nearby mistook him for an enemy soldier and opened fire.
This is the latest so-called friendly fire incident that the American military are looking at.
They think an F/A-18 fighter plane may have been brought down by a US Patriot anti-aircraft and anti-missile system and another of their jets may have mistakenly fired on some ground troops, killing one soldier.
* * *
HUMANITARIAN OPERATION IN UM QASR IS "A SHAMBLES"
3 April 2003.
BBC News, "Umm Qasr aid effort 'a shambles'", 3 April 2003.
[ http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/middle_east/2915091.stm ]
"Umm Qasr was taken 10 days ago and it was deemed safe for aid agencies to enter on Monday, and yet it is still a shambles.
"If the coalition has trouble looking after such a small town, then what are they going to do about the city of Basra or, my God, Baghdad?"
* * *
WAR CRIME: MORE INNOCENT CIVILIANS KILLED
1 April 2003.
A family of eleven were killed by in a US military operation this afternoon, giving a grand total of at least 19 civilians killed by the allies in the last 24 hours alone. The invasion of Iraq's densely-populated cities hasn't even started yet.
BBC News, "Iraq latest: At-a-glance", 1 April 2003.
[ http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/middle_east/2904893.stm ]
"1525: At least 11 members of one family - including six
children - killed in a coalition air raid in Hilla area, south of
Baghdad, western news reports say."
* * *
WAR CRIME: US AND UK USING DEPLETED URANIUM WEAPONS
1 April 2003.
The American and British governments are deliberately breaking International Law, and UN Conventions which they have signed up to, by using radioactive depleted uranium shells in the war on Iraq.
The Geneva Convention, Protocol 1, specifically prohibits any method of warfare which could damage the environment. The use of depleted uranium certainly is a material breach of this rule, because DU remains highly radioactive for billions of years.
Sunday Herald UK), "US forces' use of depleted uranium weapons is 'illegal'", 30 March 2003.
[ http://www.sundayherald.com/32522 ]
BRITISH and American coalition forces are using
depleted uranium (DU) shells in the war against
Iraq and deliberately flouting a United Nations
resolution which classifies the munitions as illegal
weapons of mass destruction.
DU contaminates land, causes ill-health and cancers
among the soldiers using the weapons, the armies
they target and civilians, leading to birth defects in
children.
Professor Doug Rokke, ex-director of the Pentagon's
depleted uranium project -- a former professor of
environmental science at Jacksonville University and
onetime US army colonel who was tasked by the US
department of defence with the post-first Gulf war
depleted uranium desert clean-up -- said use of DU
was a 'war crime'.
* * *
WAR CRIME: US TROOPS KILL MORE IRAQI CIVILIANS
1 April 2003
In Iraq last night US troops killed a family of seven on an innocent outing near Najaf. In another incident nervous US Marines, many of whome are teenagers, wrongly shot dead an Iraqi man near Shatra because they thought he might be a suicide bomber. These are just the incidents that we've heard about.
Washington Post, "A Gruesome Scene on Highway 9", 1 April 2003.
[ http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A61229-2003Mar31.html ]
"Cease fire!" Johnson yelled over the radio. Then, as he peered
into his binoculars from the intersection on Highway 9, he roared
at the platoon leader, "You just [expletive] killed a family because
you didn't fire a warning shot soon enough!"
BBC News, "US inquiry into civilian killings", 1 April 2003.
[ http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/middle_east/2904911.stm ]
The soldiers involved "absolutely did the right thing", General Peter
Pace, vice-chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said.
Just a few hours later, an unarmed Iraqi man was reportedly killed
and another was injured near the town of Shatra, 35 kilometres from
the city of Nasiriya, when US Marines opened fire on their car after
they apparently failed to realise they were driving through a
checkpoint.
US President George W Bush said there would be no pause in the
assault, promising the Iraqi people that "we are coming and we will
not stop, we will not relent until your country is free".
* * *
BRITISH SOLDIERS REFUSE TO KILL IRAQI CIVILIANS
31 March 2003
American and British soldiers who refuse to kill innocent civilians face a court marshal.
Three British lads have been sent back to Britain for refusing to pull the trigger, despite the threat of severe punishment which will be decided in a closed military courtroom.
Ultimate legal responsibility for civilian casualties lies with the US military command who are in ultimate control of the campaign.
The Guardian (UK), "Three British soldiers sent home after protesting at civilian deaths", 31 March 2003.
[ http://www.guardian.co.uk/Iraq/Story/0,2763,926135,00.html ]
Three British soldiers in Iraq have been ordered home
after objecting to the conduct of the war. It is understood
they have been sent home for protesting that the war is
killing innocent civilians. ...
It is also causing concern to British military chiefs who
are worried about growing evidence of civilians being killed
in fighting involving American soldiers around urban areas
in southern Iraq.
IRAQI CIVILIAN CASUALTIES - PICTURES WITH CAPTIONS:
[ http://www.marchforjustice.com/id191.htm ]
* * *
MORE US TROOPS KILLED BY ACCIDENT
30 March 2003.
Three US troops have were killed and one escaped in an incident which the Pentagon claims was another helicopter crash.
This is the third fatal helicopter crash so reported so far. Troops died when a British helicopter crashed on 21 March, and more lost their lives in another crash the very next day.
After the initial report this incident received no media attention.
BBC News, "Iraq latest: At-a-glance", 30 March 2003.
[ http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/middle_east/2899715.stm ]
"Three people die and one is injured when a US marine helicopter crashes in southern Iraq, Pentagon officials say."
ACCIDENTAL DEATHS TO DATE:
US TROOPS: 21
UK TROOPS: 19
* * *
FRIENDLY FIRE: ANOTHER BRITISH SOLDIER KILLED BY US FORCES
29 March 2003.
A British soldier was killed and three seriously injured when British military vehicles were attacked by a missile strike from a US A-10 Thunderbolt "tank-buster" aircraft. This is the fifth British lad to be killed by his American allies in Iraq.
BBC News, "Friendly fire 'kills fifth UK soldier", 29 March 2003.
[ http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/2897701.stm ]
"Reports say the soldier died after an American A-10
Thunderbolt attack aircraft targeted two armoured vehicles
near Basra on Friday."
* * *
FAILURE: US/UK INVASION OF IRAQ DELAYED BY BAD PLANNING
29 March 2003.
The progress of American and British troops toward Baghdad has been stopped by Iraqi defences.
The US Secretary of Defense, Donald Runsfeld, grossly underestimated the levels of Iraqi resistance that invading troops would encounter. The operational logistics were also poorly planned and insufficieiently defended, resulting in a shortage of supplies of food and ammunition.
The British and American government arrogantly assumed that the Iraqi public would welcome the invasion, but in fact their troops are facing fierce fighting from plain-clothed civilians who are willing to die defending their cities. This miscalculation has been defended by propaganda suggesting that some soldiers are wearing civilian clothing. It would be impossible to tell the difference between armed civilians and soldiers dressed as civillians.
The population of Iraq is over 24 million, and every household has been issued with guns and supplies by the Iraqi government. The US government has now decided to deploy over 120,000 additional troops, doubling the number of ground forces in Iraq.
The allies also reported a second suicide bombing this morning, after a taxi exploded at a military check-point, which serves as a warning that if US occupation never has the support of the Iraqi people the conflict will never end - just as we see in Palestine.
BBC News, "Iraq latest: At-a-glance", 29 March 2003.
[ http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/middle_east/2897699.stm ]
Reuters news agency reports unnamed US military officers suggesting there will be a four-to-six day pause in the advance on Baghdad. Pentagon and US Central Command in Qatar refuse to comment on the reports.
* * *
WAR CRIME: BRITISH ARMY BOMBS IRAQI FOOD SUPPLIES
29 March 2003.
A storage warehouse containing many thousands of tonnes of essential food and emergency supplies has been destroyed by British forces surrounding the city of Basra. This was apparently an attempt to force an early end to the siege.
The Iraqi minister responsible for food supplies reported this on live television this morning, and condemned the action as a war crime. He listed the quantities and types of supplies destroyed, which were provided to allow the city to survive under seige for at least "six months". The British military has not denied the report.
The Iraqi Trade Minister, Mehdi Saleh, was speaking on the Qatar-based satellite network al-Jazeera, and and BBC News 24 reported this on Saturday, 29 March 2003, 1000-1030 GMT, but there was a subsequent media black out in mainstream news services.
The UN has warned that the food shortage in Basra could cause a humanitarian disaster. Whether or not the destruction of Basra's food store was deliberate, this has caused an extremely serious food-shortage, yet there has been no mention whatsoever of the cause in mainstream British or American news service.
Sunday Times (Aus), "Basra: 200 Baath members targeted", 30 March 2003.
[ http://www.sundaytimes.news.com.au/common/story_page/0,7034,6210900%255E25777,00.html ]
The Al-Jazeera television network quoted Iraqi Trade Minister Mehdi Saleh
as saying British air raids had targeted food stockpiles in Basra, destroying
76,000 tonnes of goods imported as part of the oil-for-food programme.
The alleged destruction of the second Iraqi city's food stocks prompted Iraqi
Foreign Minister Naji Sabri to send a message to the United Nations
demanding the world body urge the coalition to put an end to its military
offensive.
Yahoo News, "Army in no rush to seize Basra", 29 March 2003.
[ http://uk.news.yahoo.com/030329/80/dwk4y.html ]
But Iraq accused British tanks of destroying 75,000 tonnes of food,
including children's milk, and tea and sugar in Basra.
The Age, "Soldiers destroyed food supplies", 20 March 2003.
[ http://www.theage.com.au/articles/2003/03/30/1048962637193.html ]
* * *
WAR CRIME: AMERICAN BOMBS KILL DOZENS OF CIVILIANS
28 March 2003.
More than 50 Iraqi civilians have been killed in a single air-strike. Are these bombs as accurate as the US and the UK boast? If area was targetted deliberately with a precision guided weapon this would be a war crime.
With up to 400 civilians killed to date, compared with up to 40 allied troops lost so far, for every allied casualty the US and the UK are killing ten times as many innocent civillians.
Only about ten allied troops have died in combat, so for every soldier killed by the Iraqi regime, which they claim is a threat to the entire world, US and the UK have killed around fourty innocent civillians.
It is clear that the people hit hardest by this war are the ordinary Iraqi people caught in between, who never asked to be liberated in this way.
When the invading troops bring the fighting into the cities, many thousands more innocent lives will be lost.
BBC News, "'Many dead' in Baghdad attack", 28 March 2003.
[ http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/middle_east/2897117.stm ]
At least 50 civilians are reported to have been killed during
an air raid on a Baghdad market. Graphic television pictures
showed people scrabbling through rubble to reach the dead
and injured amid the wreckage in the Shula residential area
of the city.
* * *
LIES: BLAIR ADMITS EXECUTIONS NEVER HAPPENED
28 March 2003.
The UK Prime Minister, Tony Blair, speaking from Camp David near
Washington, claimed yesterday that two dead soldiers seen on Iraqi
television had been executed. Today he was forced to admit that this was a
lie because the outraged family, who had already been told the truth, made
the real story public.
In Britain today, the notoriously inaccurate and pro-government
tabloid, the Daily Mail, filled their entire front page with a bold
headline proclaiming the false accusation that two Britons had been
executed by Saddam Hussein. The problem with such sensationalist propaganda
is that if the truth ever does emerge it receives less publicity than the
lie, so most people are left with the impression that it was true.
The British government tried to manipulate the news of two tragic deaths
for propaganda, and this is despicable. Blair's excuse was "But it was to
point up ... our knowledge about the depravity, the brutality of that
regime."
BBC News, "'Regret' over Blair execution comment", 28 March 2003.
[ http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk_politics/2896415.stm ]
A government minister has expressed regret over any hurt
caused by Tony Blair's claim that two British soldiers were
executed.
The prime minister's comments were apparently at odds
with what the British Army had told relatives of Sapper Luke
Allsopp, 24, and Staff Sergeant Simon Cullingworth, 36, both
from a bomb disposal unit of the Royal Engineers.
BBC News, "Two dead British soldiers named", 28 March 2003.
[ http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/middle_east/2893757.stm ]
Later the prime minister's official spokesman acknowledged
there was not absolute proof they were executed..."
Daily Mirror, "Our Luke was not executed", front-page, 28 March 2003.
http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/allnews/page.cfm?objectid=12783733&method=full&siteid=50143
THE heartbroken sister of ambushed soldier Luke Allsopp insisted
last night: "My brother was not executed." Nina Allsopp hit out at
"lies" surrounding his death. Grieving Nina - 29 today - said: "We
have been told by the Army that Luke died in action.
The Times, "Soldiers were executed, Blair", 28 March 2003.
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/newspaper/0,,174-626316,00.html
The Prime Minister condemned footage broadcast on Arab television
showing the men’s bloodstained bodies in the dust and claimed that
they had been executed. The footage showed the soldiers lying
close to their vehicle. A wound was visible on one of the men’s
chests but there were no obvious signs of injury to the other.
* * *
FRIENDLY FIRE: TEN US MARINES KILLED BY FRIENDLY FIRE
23 March 2003 (28 March 2003).
Five days after the event, the US government has finally released details of 10 US marines killed by a US attack helicopter on Sunday.
New York Times, "U.S. Names 8 Marines Missing Since Sunday", 28 March 2003.
[ http://www.nytimes.com/2003/03/28/international/worldspecial/28AMBU.html ]
"The soldiers were among those left stranded after about a dozen members of their unit were killed or captured after making a wrong turn while trying to skirt the city."
Washington Post, "Baghdad Hit Hard From Air As Ground Forces Regroup", 28 March 2003.
[ http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A39437-2003Mar27.html ]
"Nine Marines were killed during a fierce battle in Nasiriyah on Sunday and a 10th was killed Monday. A military source said today that preliminary indications now suggest the nine may have died from friendly fire, not enemy attack. An A-10 Thunderbolt II may have hit the Marines under the impression they were Iraqi fighters, the source said."
Washington Post, "A 'Turkey Shoot,' but With Marines as the Targets", 28 March 2003.
[ http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A40567-2003Mar28.html ]
An Army convoy that made a wrong turn drove into an Iraqi ambush that left 12 soldiers dead or captured. In a separate incident, at least nine Marines died in the fighting. A military source said today that preliminary indications suggested they might have been killed by fire from an A-10 Thunderbolt II ground attack plane trying to help them.
ACCIDENTAL DEATHS TO DATE:
US TROOPS: 18
UK TROOPS: 19
* * *
FRIENDLY FIRE: US MARINES INJURED
27 March 2003
US Marines requested backup during intense fighting near Nasirya yesterday, and 20 Marines were injured when they were mistaken for enemy troops by the tanks which arrived to support them. Several US Marine vehicles were destroyed and it is a miracle that nobody was killed.
BBC News, "Under fire in Nasiriya", 27 March 2003.
[ http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/middle_east/2892467.stm ]
Most of the injured marines suffered shrapnel wounds. The incident also led to a reported "friendly fire" incident in which Marines mistakenly fired on their own side in response.
* * *
LIES: IRAQI PEOPLE ARE NOT REBELLING AGAINST SADDAM HUSSEIN
26 March 2003.
Politicians and military leaders in the US and the UK suggested that the people of Iraq were rising up to fight against Saddam Hussein, and this was widely reported in the media. The latest report from the Shia Islamic fundamentalists involved proves that this was not true.
The US government pledged their support for the last Shiite uprising against Saddam Hussein following the Gulf war in 1991, but deserted them when the fighting began. The 1991 uprising was defeated by the Iraqi army, and many thousands of rebels were killed.
The US and UK media expected the Iraqi people to welcome the invasion. Sadly, after Bush senior's policy of deserting the Iraqi people, and Bush junior's policy of bombing their cities, most Iraqis despise the Bush family more than they do the Iraqi dictatorship.
Reuters, "Iraqi Shi'ite Opposition Says No Uprising in Basra", 26 March 2003.
[ http://www.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?storyID=2451259 ]
"TEHRAN (Reuters) - An Iraqi Shi'ite Muslim opposition group
said on Wednesday there had been disturbances, but no
uprising, in the southern Iraqi city of Basra."
BBC News, "Blair pledges support to 'uprisings'", 25 March 2003.
[ http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk_politics/2886691.stm ]
"Prime Minister Tony Blair has said coalition forces are ready
to support people in Iraq who rise up to overthrow Saddam
Hussein."
BBC News, "Uprising reported in Basra", 25 March 2003.
[ http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/middle_east/2886235.stm ]
'A "popular civilian uprising" is reported to have taken place in
the southern Iraqi city of Basra, according to British military
intelligence officials.'
* * *
WAR CRIME: US AIR STRIKES KILL POVERTY STREET CIVILIANS
26 March 2003.
BBC News, "'Many casualties' after Baghdad shops hit", 26 March 2003.
[ http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/middle_east/2887555.stm ]
The BBC's Andrew Gilligan, at the scene in the
northern Shaab district of the city, says it appears
that two missiles hit a busy parade of shops,
several hundred metres from any military buildings.
An angry crowd of several hundred people gathered
in the area following the strike, waving the shoes
and clothes of victims.
They shouted: "Down with Bush" and "Long live
Saddam".
[ Pictures: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/in_depth/photo_gallery/2888307.stm ]
Reuters, "Bodies Litter Baghdad Street After U.S. Air Raids", 26 March 2003.
[ http://www.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?storyID=2451040 ]
"BAGHDAD (Reuters) - At least 15 scorched corpses
littered a poor residential street in Baghdad on Wednesday
after U.S. bomb and missile strikes intensified on the city,
Reuters witnesses said."
[ Photo: http://wwwi.reuters.com/images/mdf242275.jpg ]
The Guardian (UK), "US confusion over targets ", front-page, 27 March 2003.
[ http://www.guardian.co.uk/international/story/0,3604,922840,00.html ]
"The US central command issued a statement to say US
aircraft had used "precision-guided weapons" to target Iraqi
anti-aircraft missiles "positioned less than 300ft from homes".
Washington Post, "War Crimes", 27 March 2003.
[ http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A34654-2003Mar26.html ]
"Those pictures of destruction and death were getting plenty
of airtime yesterday in the world's media, as happens in every
case when U.S. forces are accused of harming the innocent."
* * *
AIR STRIKES ON BAGHDAD WERE BAD STRATEGY
26 March 2003.
The "shock and awe" strategy devised by US Defence Secretary, Donald Rumsfeld, did not work as planned. Unfortunately several days of heavy air strikes on Baghdad and other cities failed to destroy the Iraqi regime, although they did kill several hundred innocent civilians.
American and British bombs have provoked rage on the streets of Baghdad, and as a result the Iraqi people may never accept any new US-led government.
New York Times, "Top General Concedes Air Attacks Did Not Deliver Knockout Blow", 25 March 2003.
[ http://www.nytimes.com/2003/03/26/international/worldspecial/26AIR.html ]
"The nation's top military officer acknowledged today that the
Pentagon's strategy to shock the Iraqi government quickly
with a devastating early air assault has not worked exactly
as desired."
* * *
FRIENDLY FIRE: ONE BRITISH TANK DESTROYED BY ANOTHER
25 March 2003.
The two-man British crew of a Challanger tank were killed in a tragic accident when their vehicle was destroyed by another British Challanger tank.
BBC News, "UK soldiers killed by 'friendly fire'", 26 March 2003.
[ http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/2886715.stm ]
"The pair, serving with the Queen's Royal Lancers, were killed when their Challenger II tank came under fire early on Tuesday morning. Two others were seriously injured."
ACCIDENTAL DEATHS TO DATE:
US TROOPS: 8
UK TROOPS: 19
BBC News, UK's Iraq death toll reaches 20", 25 March 2003.
[ http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/2886579.stm ]
"The number of UK armed forces personnel lost since the start of the war on Iraq stands at 20. Just two of them have been infantry soldiers killed by Iraqi fire."
(BBC's figure is incorrect - count for yourself below)
BBC News - British casualties in the Iraq conflict:
[ http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/2882147.stm ]
TOTAL DEATHS TO DATE:
US TROOPS: ?
UK TROOPS: 20
* * *
MORE US TROOPS KILLED IN ACCIDENTS
25 March 2003.
The US military is a greater threat to American lives than Saddam Hussein's regime. At this stage more invading troops have been killed by accident than by the Iraqi defenders.
New York Times, "Three Soldiers Who Died in Accidents While in Iraq", 25 March 2003.
[ http://www.nytimes.com/2003/03/25/international/worldspecial/25CASU.html ]
"On Monday, Sergeant Hodson was one of three
American servicemen that the Department of Defense
identified as having died in accidents in recent days
while serving in Iraq.
"Sergeant Hodson and another soldier, Brandon S.
Tobler, Army Reserve specialist, died in separate
vehicle accidents, the department said. A third soldier,
Cpl. Eric Orlowski, was killed when a machine gun
accidentally discharged. The Pentagon gave few details."
ACCIDENTAL DEATHS TO DATE:
US TROOPS: 8
UK TROOPS: 17
* * *
FAILURE: US AND UK BROKE PROMISE TO FIND WMD WITHIN 48-HOURS
25 March 2003.
The US government ordered the military to concentrate on finding alleged Iraqi weapons of mass destruction in the first 48-hours of the invasion, but after a week of war no banned weapons have been found. The White House kept very quiet about the missed deadline, but they would have wanted everybody to know if their allegations had been proved true. The US government's justification for invading Iraq has no credibility.
Sunday Times (UK), "Terror gas detector vans to guard Britain", front-page, 9 February 2003.
[ http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,2087-571515,00.html ]
"American and British special forces will spend the first days
of the war in Iraq hunting for biological and chemical
weapons to prove the case made by Colin Powell, the US
secretary of state, to the UN Security Council last week.
"Officials in the Bush administration have urged the Pentagon
to produce convincing evidence within 48 hours of the launch
of any campaign to counter an expected wave of international
criticism.
* * *
WAR CRIME: US TROOPS CUT OFF WATER SUPPLY TO BASRA
25 March 2003.
The Australian, "Children 'likely to die in Basra'", 25 March 2003.
[ http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/common/story_page/0,5744,6184428%255E1702,00.html ]
"At least 100,000 small children in Basra are at risk of disease after
water supplies were cut following US-led air strikes on the besieged
southern Iraqi city, the United Nations Children's Fund has warned."
* * *
BRITISH ARMY ADMITS IRAQI PEOPLE WANT NO "LIBERATION"
24 March 2003.
Contrary the claims of US and UK politicians, the people of Iraq do not want to be invaded and bombed.
BBC News, "British soldier killed in action", 24 March 2003.
[ http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/2881815.stm ]
"The soldier was killed in combat early on Monday morning during an operation near al-Zubayr, to the south of Basra."
"We always had the idea that everyone in this area hated Saddam. Clearly, there are a number who don't," said Captain Patrick Trueman.
* * *
US ATTACK HELICOPTERS CAPTURED BY IRAQI FARMERS
24 March 2003.
A gang of local farmers who were trying to prevent the allied invasion have captured an intact US Apache helicopter and its two crew members. Paid professional soldiers are seldom as furious as ordinary men fighting to defend their homeland.
BBC News, "Iraq shows off Apache crew", 25 March 2003
[ http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/middle_east/2883043.stm ]
"A correspondent for the US television network CNN, who was travelling with the US Army Fifth Corps 11th Attack Helicopter Regiment, said the helicopters had been attacking Republican Guard units close to Baghdad in a night-time operation."
BBC News, "Iraq captures US helicopter", 24 March 2003.
[ http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/middle_east/2880467.stm ]
Iraq's Information Minister Mohammed Saeed al-Sahhaf said: "A small number of peasants - brave peasants - shot down two Apaches".
* * *
WAR CRIME: CIVILIANS IN SYRIA KILLED BY US MILITARY
24 March 2003.
The US military attacked a civilian bus, killing the passangers who were trying to escape from the fighting. Was this a war crime, or are American weapons simply less accurate than they want people to believe?
BBC News, "US confirms Syrian bus hit", 24 March 2003.
[ http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/middle_east/2881119.stm ]
"The US military has confirmed that a bus carrying Syrian civilians was hit by an American missile, killing five people and wounding at least 10."
BBC News, "Iraq latest: At-a-glance", 24 March 2003.
[ http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/middle_east/2879461.stm ]
"0825: The official Syrian news agency says five Syrian civilians were killed by an American missile near the Iraqi border."
* * *
INACCURATE WEAPONS: US WAR PLANE BOMBS TURKEY.
23 March 2003.
BBC News, "Iraq latest: At-a-glance", 24 March 2003.
[ http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/middle_east/2879461.stm ]
1815:Turkish police confirm that a bomb - thought to be from a US fighter plane - has fallen in Turkey's south-eastern province near the Syrian border.
* * *
FRIENDLY FIRE: US MISSILES DESTROY BRITISH AIRCRAFT
23 March 2003.
US Marines shot-down, with surface-to-air patriot missiles, a British RAF jet plane that was returning from a successful mission.
BBC News, "RAF Tornado downed by US missile", 23 March 2003.
[ http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/2877349.stm ]
Washington Post, "Britain Mourns More Servicemen Killed by Friendly Fire", 24 March 2003.
[ http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A16789-2003Mar23.html ]
"Britain today responded with grief and questions to the downing of a Royal Air Force jet fighter with a two-member crew and the death of a veteran television newsman, both apparently caused by American fire.
"The deaths marked the third consecutive day of British casualties due to accidents or friendly fire."
ACCIDENTAL DEATHS TO DATE:
US TROOPS: 5
UK TROOPS: 17
* * *
LIES: UMM QASR PORT NOT UNDER US CONTROL AS CLAIMED.
23 March 2003.
The US military claimed to have "complete control" of the port of Umm Qasr. Over the weekend American and British TV news showed maps of Iraq with most of the Southern half of the country coloured-in indicating allied control. In reality the US Marine Corps, whose recruits are predominantly teenagers, were forced to retreat from Umm Qasr while experienced British troops were sent to replace them as cannon-fodder. The allied troops are under US command, and British casualties are less of a political problem than American ones back at home.
The allied invasion was supposed to have started from the South and pushed North, but Umm Qasr is the farthest Southward point in Iraq, and the allies have not even secured the first land they set foot on.
BBC News, "Basra campaign claims second Briton", 25 March 2003.
[ http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/2883225.stm ]
'A second British soldier has been killed in combat as British commanders declare Iraq's second city of Basra a "military objective" in the light of fierce resistance.'
BBC News, "British soldier killed in combat", 24 March 2003.
[ http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/2881815.stm ]
"British troops have been involved in "extremely heavy fighting" around Basra and the port of Umm Qasr on Monday, according to the BBC's Caroline Wyatt at British forces HQ in northern Kuwait."
BBC News, "Fierce resistance blunts US push", 24 March 2003.
[ http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/middle_east/2879451.stm ]
"In Umm Qasr, the 15th US Marine Expeditionary Unit is being replaced by 4-2 Commando of the Royal Marine Commandos."
BBC News, "Fierce resistance blunts US push", 24 March 2003.
[ http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/middle_east/2879855.stm ]
"The southern Iraqi port of Umm Qasr also saw renewed fighting on Sunday, after US Marines found a large group of Iraqi soldiers there - some of whom are thought to have been from the elite Iraqi Republican Guard."
BBC News, "RAF Tornados join air strikes", 21 March 2003.
[ http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk_politics/2871525.stm ]
"Sir Michael said earlier that American troops had taken complete control of the strategically important port town of Umm Qasr in southern Iraq."
* * *
LIES: NASIRIYA CITY NOT SECURED AS CLAIMED
23 March 2003.
The US military boldly claimed that Nasirya had fallen, but this later proved untrue.
BBC News, "Saddam promises Iraqi victory", 24 March 2003.
[ http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/middle_east/2880153.stm ]
"US troops are still encountering stiff opposition around Nasiriya, while the British military say their forces are coming under persistent sniper attack in the areas outside Umm Qasr, Al Zubayr and Basra."
BBC News, "Hopes for missing UK soldiers", 24 March 2003.
"US Marines suffered up to 10 dead and 14 wounded in heavy fighting with Iraqi forces in and around the southern city of Nasiriya."
BBC News, "Fierce resistance blunts US push", 24 March 2003.
"Seven American Marines were killed at Nasiriya and five others were shown captive on Iraqi television."
BBC News, "US forces endure 'toughest day'", 23 March 2003.
"American units are still engaged in fierce fighting in Nasiriya, a key crossing point on the Euphrates river, and other areas of southern Iraq."
BBC News, "Iraq latest: At-a-glance", 22 March 2003.
[ http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/middle_east/2874853.stm ]
"1220: US military spokesman says southern Iraqi town of Nasiriya has fallen."
* * *
LIES: BASRA CITY NOT CAPTURED AS CLAIMED
23 March 2003.
The US/UK allies claimed they had captured Basra, Iraq's second largest city, but this propaganda proved untrue by subsequent conflicting reports.
BBC News, "Hopes for missing UK soldiers", 24 March 2003.
[ http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/2879631.stm ]
"The Rumeila oil fields west of Basra, which had on Friday been pronounced "safe" by British and US troops taking them, were pronounced "unsafe" by US officials on Monday morning."
BBC News, "Fierce resistance blunts US push", 24 March 2003.
"The International Red Cross warns of a humanitarian emergency in Basra. A spokesman tells the BBC that water and electricity supplies to the city have been cut off."
BBC News, "Basra faces water supply crisis", 23 March 2003.
[ http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/middle_east/2879373.stm ]
"By Sunday night, the coalition had secured positions on the outskirts of the city, with no immediate plans to enter."
BBC News, "'Worse to come,' says Iraq", 23 March 2003.
[ http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/middle_east/2878253.stm ]
"The Americans tried to move a column of tanks from the area of Basra International Airport. It was a civilian quarter known as Juzayzah. The Iraqi fighters confronted them. They destroyed four tanks and killed a number of the American mercenaries and wounded a number of others."
BBC News, "Reporters' Log: War in Iraq", 22 March 2003.
[ http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/2873651.stm ]
"Northern Kuwait :: Hilary Andersson :: 2140GMT
"The British forces haven't entered the city of Basra as they don't want to get into urban fighting. I think they are a bit worried about how the local population might react. They are sitting about 10km to the west. They may yet enter Basra over the coming days."
BBC News, "Applause as Marines enter Basra", 22 March 2003.
[ http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/middle_east/2875777.stm ]
"US and British marines now seem confident that they have secured Iraq's second-largest city, Basra."
BBC News, "Iraq latest: At-a-glance", 22 March 2003.
[ http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/middle_east/2874853.stm ]
"1255: The BBC's David Willis says US and UK forces are now confident they have taken control of Iraq's second city, Basra. He said hundreds of young Iraqi men applauded allied troops as they entered Basra, and that hundreds of soldiers have surrendered."
* * *
US ADMITS WAR WILL TAKE LONGER THAN CLAIMED
22 March 2003.
WASHINGTON, March 22 - President Bush gathered his war council at Camp David this morning, while warning that the war in Iraq "could be longer and more difficult than some have predicted."
New York Times, "Bush Warns That the War in Iraq May Last Longer Than Anticipated", 23 March 2003.
[ http://www.nytimes.com/2003/03/23/international/worldspecial/23PREX.html ]
* * *
WAR CRIME: US/UK MEDIA SHOW IRAQI POWs
22 March 2003.
British and American TV and newspapers have been releasing pictures of captured Iraqi prisoners of war, in breach of international law under the Geneva convention. The public in Britain saw pictures of Iraqi POWs brutally humiliated, held by their hair with rifle barrels pushed against their heads. US POWs were interviewed politely, yet the US government called this "brutal". POWs from Afghanistan have been regularly filmed bound and gagged at Camp X-Ray, Guantanamo Bay, and the US refusal to give these troops POW status is a clear breach of international law. In the UK the BBC initially refused to show pictures of US POWs for the same reason, which is an outrageous hypocrisy.
BBC News, "What happens to troops who surrender?", 23 March 2003.
[ http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/middle_east/2872897.stm ]
* * *
INACCURATE US/UK WEAPONS
22 March 2003.
The attack on Iraq is killing civilians, and claims that weapons are accurate do not bring dead children back to live.
BBC News, "Iraq latest: At-a-glance", 22 March 2003.
[ http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/middle_east/2874853.stm ]
"1105: Iraqi health minister says three people killed and 207 in overnight raids on Baghdad. Iraq says 207 people have been injured in the raids."
"0640: Iraqi Information Minister Mohammad al-Sahhaf says 207 civilians wounded in the bombing of Baghdad overnight."
* * *
US SOLDIER ATTACKS FRIENDS OVER PETTY DISPUTE
22 March 2003.
"A US soldier has been arrested after a grenade attack at a rear US base camp in northern Kuwait which killed another serviceman and wounded 12 others."
These teenagers with weapons are a danger to their own comrades, let alone innocent Iraqi civilians.
BBC News, "US soldier 'attacks own base'", 23 March 2003.
[ http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/middle_east/2877087.stm ]
ACCIDENTAL DEATHS TO DATE:
US TROOPS: 5
UK TROOPS: 15
* * *
WAR CRIME: US ARMY KILLED THREE REPORTERS
22 March 2003.
Three British civilians working for ITN - an experienced reporter, a camera-man, and a translator - were killed by American troops near Basra in Southern Iraq.
A fourth reporter escaped and reported that British troops on the right-hand side of the road opened fire on them.
BBC News, "Tributes to war correspondent", 24 March 2003.
[ http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/2878777.stm ]
"Tributes have continued to be made to veteran ITN reporter Terry Lloyd who has been killed in Iraq by 'friendly fire' from Allied forces."
* * *
INACCURATE WEAPONS: US MISSILES HIT IRAN
22 March 2003.
Three US missiles hit a city in Iran, hundreds of miles away from Baghdad.
These weapons are not always as accurate as they like us to think.
BBC News, "Reporters' Log: War in Iraq", 22 March 2003.
[ http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/2873651.stm ]
"Washington D.C. :: Justin Webb :: 1708GMT
"The Pentagon accepts that as many as three
US missiles aimed at Iraq might have landed
in neighbouring Iran. At least one of the
impacts was thought to be a Cruise missile
launched from a ship in the Gulf. The
Iranian authorities say several people were
injured."
* * *
WAR CRIME: BRITISH MILITARY KILL IRAQI CIVILIANS
22 March 2003, 1300-1325 (GMT) - Southern Iraq.
During a live interview with a British army officer, broadcast by Sky News, UK.
A terrified Iraqi civilian arrived in his car and told the reporter that the British troops nearby had opened fired on him.
The windows of the vehicle were perforated by multiple bullet-holes indicating a machine-gun attack.
The camera filmed inside the car where a seriously injured civilian lay dying.
[ US/UK MEDIA DO NOT REPORT US/UK WAR CRIMES ]
* * *
TRAGIC BRITISH HELICOPTER CRASH
22 March 2003.
Two British Navy Sea King helicopters crashed into each other in the Gulf. All seven of the crews were killed.
BBC News, "Duke's tribute to Royal Navy dead", 22 March 2003.
[ http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/2875009.stm ]
ACCIDENTAL DEATHS TO DATE:
US TROOPS: 4
UK TROOPS: 15
* * *
TRAGIC AMERICAN HELICOPTER CRASH
21 March 2003.
Eight UK troops and 4 US Marines were killed when an American Sea Knight helicopter crashed in Northern Kuwait.
BBC News, "Duke's tribute to Royal Navy dead", 22 March 2003.
[ http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/2875009.stm ]
ACCIDENTAL DEATHS TO DATE:
US TROOPS: 4
UK TROOPS: 8
* * *
PENTAGON THREAT TO ATTACK INDEPENDENT WAR REPORTERS
9 March 2003.
The US military warned that journalists reporting from Iraq without official authorization will be attacked.
[ http://www.gulufuture.com/news/kate_adie030310.htm ]
[ http://media.gn.apc.org/fl/0304war.html ]
[ http://www.americanpolitics.com/20030311Baker.html ]
[ http://www.rte.ie/news/journal/av.html ]
* * *
FURTHER READING:
The Insider - Iraq War, Latest News:
[ http://www.theinsider.org/mailing/archive.asp ]
The Debate - War on Iraq
[ http://www.thedebate.org ]
"The Insider" mailing list article, 05 January 2004.
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