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August 22, 2006

This Says it All...

Dozens of women and children shot at close range by marines not considered "unusual."Not worthy of an investigation.

The Marine officer who commanded the battalion involved in the Haditha killings last November did not consider the deaths of 24 Iraqis, many of them women and children, unusual and did not initiate an inquiry, according to a sworn statement he gave to military investigators in March.

"I thought it was very sad, very unfortunate, but at the time, I did not suspect any wrongdoing from my Marines," Lt. Col. Jeffrey R. Chessani, commander of the 3rd Battalion of the 1st Marines, said in the statement.

Rest of the article is here. It's an interesting glimpse into the mindset of the army. The Marines seemed to believe that everything that happens is the fault of the enemy.

Posted by zeynep at 07:37 AM | Comments (1)

August 16, 2006

If You Needed Proof...

It really is true, the good die young. By this token, Pinochet should be among us for some time. Here's to hoping Pinochet's life includes a trial, unlike General Stroessner's.

Posted by zeynep at 09:39 PM | Comments (3)

August 04, 2006

War Crimes

I don't know how else to put it but these are war crimes:

BEIRUT, Lebanon (CNN) -- Israeli aircraft blasted main roadways north of Beirut for the first time in the three-week conflict on Friday, knocking out four key bridges.

The attacks severed the last major overland route for relief supplies into Lebanon, international aid agencies told The Associated Press on Friday.

"This is Lebanon's umbilical cord," Christiane Berthiaume of the World Food Program told AP. "This [road] has been the only way for us to bring in aid.

It's just stunning that this all gets reported without comment. These ... are .. war crimes.

Also, look at the ratios:


As of midday Friday, 644 Lebanese civilians and soldiers have died in the three-week conflict, and 2,315 have been wounded, according to Lebanon's Internal Security Forces.

Israeli authorities are reporting at least 68 deaths -- including 27 civilians and 41 soldiers -- since the conflict started. They say there are more than 600 injuries.

Hizbullah has been slammed for firing indiscriminately into civilian areas -- and that it does. But look, Israel, which has the power to aim, has killed a lot more civilians. So, how are we to compare a force that can't aim but kills more soldiers than civilians, to a force that can aim and still kills hundreds of civilians and bombs routes that refuges could use to get aid and aid could be brought in.

Posted by zeynep at 10:38 AM | Comments (3)

August 02, 2006

Where is the world going?

"Civilian Targets." That was the subject of a piece of spam I received yesterday, pushing some stock or other.

Whatever happened to "Paris Hilton," "Urgent, Your Money," and "Lose Weight Fast"? Civilian Targets?

Posted by zeynep at 07:44 AM | Comments (0)