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Friday, February 01, 2008

NEWS FROM THE OTHER SIDE--- WHERE IS AMERICA GOING?

US Iraq Rules of Engagement leaked; Raises question about Rumsfeld authorizing war crimes
by Stephen Soldz http://www.opednews.com

Wikileaks has obtained the long kept secret Rules of Engagement (ROE) for U.S. troops in Iraq. This document sets out the rules guiding authorized U.S. troop actions in that occupation. While the Wikileaks document dates from 2005, as these ROEs generally change slowly the rules for today are likely similar, though we can't be sure, of course, to what extent more recent ROE's differ. Among several interesting nuggets in the ROE, it provides indications that U.S. attacks likely to result in civilian deaths required authorization at the top of the Pentagon, by the SECDEF (Secretary of Defense). Thus, the ROE states repeatedly; "If the target is in a HIGH CD [collateral damage] area, SECDEF approval is required." And what is the definition of a High Collateral Damage area? The ROE contains a set of explicit definitions of its terms. There we find High Collateral Damage Targets defined as: "Those targets that, if struck, have a ten percent probability of causing collateral damage through blast debris and fragmentation and are estimated to result in significant collateral effects on noncombatant persons and structures, including: (A) Non-combatant casualties estimated at 30 or greater; (B) Significant effects on Category I No Strike protected sites in accordance with Ref D; (C) In the case of dual-use facilities, effects that significantly impact the non-combatant population, including significant effects on the environment/facilities/infrastructure not related to an adversary’s war making ability; or (D) Targets in close proximity to known human shields." Thus, all attacks, except those in self-defense or active pursuit, with a reasonable possibility of harming 30 or more civilians needed approval from Defense Secretary Rumsfeld. Presumably such approval would need to be in writing. The ROE thus suggest that there may exist an extensive documentary record of requests, and possibly Rumsfeld's approval or rejection, for attacks with the potential for resulting in significant civilian casualties. Congress should demand access to these documents to determine the extent to which attacks resulting in civilian casualties were authorized, potentially providing insight into who was responsible for possible war crimes committed in the course of the occupation. While much of the rest of the ROE appears rather unsurprising, there are a couple of other interesting aspects to the document. One is that the main "hostile forces," from the U.S. perspective are the Baath remnants, such as the Special Republican Guard and the Baath Party Militia. There is no mention of Iraqi al-Qaida or its predecessors. These predecessors, led by al-Zarqawi, had identified with and pledged allegiance to al-Qaida as early as October, 2004, yet they receive no mention in the ROE. The ROE rather refers to Baath forces that "have transitioned from overt conventional resistance to insurgent methods of resistance." While the Sunni al-Qaida predecessors do not make the list of hostile forces, the Shia-based Mahdi Army of Muqtada al-Sadr does make the list of "Declared Hostile Forces," However, as of the ROE's writing, this status was "suspended and such individuals will not be engaged except in self-defense." Another interesting feature of the ROE is a complete ignoring of the language barriers separating U.S. troops from the Iraqi populace. Thus, in a section on graduated force, the first stage is "shout verbal warnings to halt." There is not even a mention of the fact that most Iraqis cannot understand warnings shouted in English. In general, the ROE is notable for lacking any recognition that, in an "insurgency," there are at best blurry boundaries between combatants and noncombatants. Thus, there is no emphasis of the need to take extraordinary measures to protect the civilian population. Rather, it provides a rationale for virtually any attacks: "US Forces may always use force, up to and including deadly force, to neutralize and/or detain individuals who commit hostile acts or exhibit hostile intent against US Forces or Coalition Forces." As we have seen repeatedly, from the numerous roadblock killings of civilians to the Haditha massacre, this ROE authorization to use force can be used to provide cover for virtually any civilian killings. The ROE suggests that preventing such deaths was low on the priority list of those officials writing the rules of engagement for the occupation. Even so, a military study found that less than half of US occupation soldiers would report a unit member for violating an ROE. Thus, even the limited protections provided civilians in the ROE were often not present on the ground.
http://soldzresearch.com/stephensoldz
Stephen Soldz is psychoanalyst, psychologist, public health researcher, and faculty member at the Institute for the Study of Violence of the Boston Graduate School of Psychoanalysis. He is a member of Roslindale Neighbors for Peace and Justice. He maintains the Psyche, Science, and Society blog.Contact Author - Contact Editor - View Other Articles by Author

Scientists See WTC - Hutchison Effect Parallel
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Follow The Money? God Forbid.
It's been over six years since 9/11, but U.S. regulatory entities have been slow to follow through with reports about the complex financial transactions that occurred just prior to and following the attacks. Such research could shed light on such questions as who was behind them�and who benefited�and could help lay to rest the rumors that have been festering.
9/11 Truth Was NEVER About Vindictiveness ---Enlargen
Those who simply don't want the truth about 9/11, often paint the truth movement as a vindictive crusade. Nothing could be further from the truth. So what is it about? TRUTH. A book that many have heard about that holds some great truths in it, said that "the truth shall set you free." How can it set us free? On 9/11 Americans were put under a spell . . .
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Iraq: US Military Extends Its Offensive Into The Northern City Of Mosul
Since January 1, American and Iraqi government forces have been conducting a major offensive, codenamed Phantom Phoenix, against Sunni Arab-based resistance groups in northern Iraq. The killing and repression is now being extended to Mosul, an ancient metropolis on the banks of Tigris River and Iraq�s second largest city after Baghdad.
Think Tank: Surge Now Needed In Afghanistan
The American Enterprise Institute, the think tank that came up with the �surge� strategy for Iraq, has just completed a re-evaluation of U.S. strategy in Afghanistan and Pakistan and concluded that another surge of U.S. forces is required, this time into southern Afghanistan.
Tomgram: Bombs Away Over Iraq
This is undoubtedly the most extensive use of air power in Iraq since the Bush administration's invasion of 2003 and probably represents a genuine shifting of American military strategy in that country. Despite, a few humdrum wire service pieces, no place else in the mainstream has bothered to cover the story adequately either.
Ronald Reagan's Crimes
Reagan's crimes are many and started well before he was President when he and Bush paid the Iranian's to not release the hostages in order to prevent the re-election of Jimmy Carter in 1980, not mention his reign of stupidity as Governor of California. The hostages were released as promised as Reagan was sworn into office. Reagan then secretly sold chemical & biological weapons to Iraq......
American Oil Companies Offered Five Million Dollars To Each Iraqi MP To Pass The Oil Law :: Www.uruknet.info :: Informaz
How about this? If the so-called Oil Revenue "profit-sharing law" would be such a good thing for the Iraqi People, why are they bribing Iraqi Lawmakers at 5 Million a pop?
Iraq Not Getting Rebuilt From Oil Cash- Fed Reserve Bank Has It
Increased Iraqi oil revenues stemming from high prices are piling up in the Federal Reserve Bank of New York rather than being spent on needed reconstruction projects. Some $6 billion to $7 billion from last year's budget is "being rolled over" and invested in U.S. treasuries. These Bush guys are just thugs and fleecers. They've emptied the US Treasury, now they are plundering Iraq's?

The Guy From Boston

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