Iraqis may sue US over invasion

[cal04]

A US report stating Saddam Hussein had no weapons of mass destruction since 1991 should pave the way for Iraqis to sue US-led forces for invading the country, an Iraqi politician has said.

Iyad al-Samarrai of the Iraqi Islamic Party said on Thursday that the report, drafted by the chief US weapons inspector in Iraq Charles Duelfer, proves the war was "not legitimate".

"All the information available before the war showed that Saddam Hussein had put an end to his programme," he said.
"These weapons were used as a pretext by the US and British governments to invade Iraq."He added: "We have the right to demand compensation and the withdrawal of the occupation forces."

Apology demanded
Suha Said, a member of the Iraqi interim parliament, said "now that the WMD file is closed, it's only natural that Washington should compensate the Iraqi people for all the damage inflicted since April 9, 200 "The United States should now pull their troops out of Iraq and present a formal apology to the Iraqi people," she added.


http://english.aljazeera.net/NR/exeres/2E5CE52A-F5CE-433A-9F9F-3AA603B6F0DF.htm

[ckramer]

1. How about this?

Fallujah

story

[anarchy1999]

41. Please see this thread in GD. Thanks

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=104&topic_id=2459291&mesg_id=2459291

I just received this from someone I personally hold in very high regard and I know is held in high regard by many others and organizations. I am sure there are more than a few here that might be interested or know someone who would be in the message he sent to me. If you want more info and or to talk with the person who sent this to me, pm me. Note, the report in downloadable and is 38 pages long with lots of info and references. Very impressive.

Here it is:


You can review the attached press release that has
been compiled by military experts, retired military
brass, social scientists and professionals who have a
vital concern about the evasion of accountability of
the Bush Administration in response to several
investigations of the Iraq, Afghanistan and
Guantanamo.

The current draft can be reviewed on the website:

www.geocities.com/publiusresearch/

Collaborative efforts by "de-instituionalized"
military generals and officers, professors and
scientific researchers have contributed to this
inter-disciplinary report. We feel compelled to speak
out with out professional expertize in the face of
denials, distortions (spin) and deception that are
being politically manipulated to influence voters.

You are invited to review this report, submit
feedback, and improve the hypotheses that the evidence
and data suggests.

We do not expect unanimous consensus, but rather
stimulate your own investigations and conclusions
supported with data.

Respectfully submitted,

[Vincardog]

2. Right I want to see aWol say My BAD

[Union Thug]

3. Where are those flowers and songs

celebrating the greatness of St. Chimpy of Bush?

[Guaranteed]

4. Yeah, I'd say we owe them a trillion or two for all the damage

we did and people we killed.

[olddad56]

20. we owe them our unborn children...

since they can rest assured that theirs will be born deformed for the next 4.5 billion years.

[NVMojo]

37. the usa needs to be charged with war crimes

and those bastards need to be charged with treason.

[SoCalDem]

5. We just killed them out of kindness, and a desire for them to be free

like we are :eyes:

Never mind the fact that the PEOPLE never ASKED us to "help them"..

I am SURE that most people hated Saddam, but until THEY were ready to deal with him, we should have stayed OUT..

[Bandit]

9. Why the past tense?

They are still being killed on a fairly large scale. We should not only apologize to Iraq but to the entire world.

[SoCalDem]

13. I was referring to the original invasion..

You are right..we ARE killing them, only now it's NOT with kindness. We are afraid of them, and our soldiers are just killing people before THEY get killed themselves.. A very nasty, but predictable, consequence of war:(

[Malva Zebrina]

6. I am convinced that the lies being constantly told by Bush and Cheney

Bush said today, or yesterday, that Iraq was a "threat" so he was right to invade. They are setting up a defense, because I think they know they will be accused in a court of war crimes and treason against the American people and that is the reason for these incessant and obvious lies told over and over . It is no longer a propaganda machine--it is setting up a defense, imo.

At least, that is my hope. Neither should ever go off without paying for what they have done in Iraq and the slaughter of thousands upon thousands of people--on lies.

I wonder also these days--how does this affect the trial of Saddam? If he was not developing WMD, should he not have a case to make in a court that he was innocent? I know he was a tyrant, but that is not the reason we took him. What would be, or what is the actual charge against Saddam?

[ladybugg33]

7. Good point.

I think you may be right. If there is any justice at all in the world, this administration should be on trial just like Milosevich.

[NVMojo]

39. Try them like the NAZI'S!!

[NVMojo]

38. we need to oust Bushass

and then put Sadaam on trial in public so he can defend himself in public. I want to hear what he knows and what he says. Was he framed so we could own his land? WHAT!!!!

[dolstein]

8. Lemme guess, Ramsey Clarke will represent Iraq?

NT

[robbedvoter]

16. lemme guess: Joe Lieberman will defend "the good name of this war"?

[maryallen]

21. Well, IF George W. Bush HAD LISTENED to Ramsey Clark ..

the U.S. would be a lot better off today.

Clark did have a lot more wartime experience than W, but when has that ever stopped the Republicans?

[Cocoa]

10. good luck collecting

the U.S. does not have a good record submitting to law.

[Bandit]

12. What Law? We do not recognise the World Court

Who would they get to try their suit? We do not recognize any International Body it would appear. We believe we can do any damn thing we please without consequence. The world be damned.

[shraby]

33. We DO recognize the Geneva Convention

and our own Constitution.
Any treaty entered into by our government becomes the law of the land.
Our constitution doesn't allow for an aggressive war like invading Iraq.

[realFedUp]

11. Call Johnnie Cochran!

Now THIS would be interesting Court TV...
think Abrams will spend his whole show on it?

[cal04]

14. "This report adds nothing new

This report adds nothing new," said Jassim Muhammad Salem, an editorialist for al-Mada daily.

"The invasion was not motivated by the weapons of mass
destruction. Even Bush and Rumsfeld admitted they wanted to start implementing their plan for a Greater Middle East," he said.

He was referring to a plan touted by Bush's administration as a solution to reform and democratise the Middle East but perceived by many as an aggressive imperialist bid.

Interim parliament member Abbas al-Bayati said the new report could also undermine Bush's credibility and benefit his Democrat rival in the 2 November presidential elections.

[robbedvoter]

15. But, but, Cheney said they were part of the coalition!

[n2mark]

17. Do you think

this is why Shrub & company want to remain in power? As long as they are in power, they won't be convicted of anything. They need to stay in power to save their asses.

[Carolab]

42. That's sweet in its naivete

they want to complete their coup d'etat...world empire...where have you been? As soon as they steal this election again, or find a way to call it off, whatever--they will push * aside and begin their fascist regime in earnest.

[Kikosexy2]

18. War...

crime tribunals for Chimp and the war-mongering thugs?

[dignan27]

19. gahhhh Frivolous Lawsuit! better rework that tort reform bill

[Disturbed]

23. Saddam on Trial

Saddam On Trial


Marsh Arabs. He could make the same argument for reclaiming the marshland that countries around the world do for hydroelectric dams. All in the name of progress. And he did have a rebellion to put down. Insurgents were attacking government troops during the night and hiding in the marshes during the day.

If that were happening today, what do you think the US would do? The first major marsh-draining scheme was proposed in the 1951 Haigh Report, "Control of the Rivers of Iraq," drafted by British engineers working for the Iraqi government. "The report describes an array of sluices, embankments and canals on the lower reaches of the Tigris and Euphrates that would be needed to 'reclaim' the marshes." The study's senior engineer, Frank Haigh, felt that the standing marsh water was being wasted, so he "proposed concentrating the flow of the Tigris into a few embanked channels that would not overflow into the marshes. He proposed one large canal through the main `Amara marsh." In this way, Iraq would be able to "capture the marsh water for irrigation" purposes to aid in feeding the newly created State of Iraq. Construction of the large canal, called the Third River, began in 1953. Further construction took place in the 1960's. It was not until the 1980's, however, during the Iran-Iraq War, that major work was resumed. Today, many of the water projects in the marsh area bear a striking resemblance to the Haigh Plan -- the only problem is that the projects are not being used for agricultural improvement!

<http://gurukul.ucc.american.edu/ted/marsh.htm>

Mass graves

Group 1: Shiites and Kurds killed by the Iraqi govt before Gulf war (when he was an ally of the US. The US provided WMD and the means to deliver them to Saddam during that period. They were allies, and the US continued to supply arms and assisitance knowing that Iraq was doing this. How can the US say then it was ok, but now 20 years later it's bad. Aren't the countries who supplied the means for this murder just as guilty?)

Group 2: Iranians and Iraqis killed during the Iran Iraq war (Again, the US supported Iraq with WMD, helicopters and critical battle planning assistance, so it looks pretty foolish coming to him 20 years later and saying, but you shouldn't have helped us fight our enemy Iran)

Group 3: Masses of Iraqi soldiers and buldozed into mass graves by US troops during the Gulf War. If you think that is a crime against humanity, you know who to blame)

Group 4: Sunnis and Shites massacred by Shiites and Kurds in the pose Desert Storm uprisings encouraged by the US. You can't blame Saddam for this, and when you read about the situation, what choice did he have but to put the rebellion down, just as the US is doing in Iraq today.

As put forth by regional analyst Sandra Mackay: "The rebels utilized their guns and numbers to seize the civilian operatives of the Baath government while former Shia conscripts turned on officers of the army. They hung their captives from rafters of an Islamic school, shot them in the head before walls turned into execution chambers, or simply slit their throats at the point of capture.' (The Reckoning: Iraq and the Legacy of Saddam Hussein, page 24) Dilip Hiro, another Iraqi historian, documents atrocities in the holy city of Kerbala: "Insurgents had attacked the army headquarters and seized weapons? They decapitated or hanged 75 military officials, some of them Shia, and tortured many more." (Desert Shield To Desert Storm: The Second Gulf War, page 402)

All said, several thousand policemen, clerks, military personnel and employees of the government were slain, according to Omar Ali, another regional authority. (See Crisis in the Arabian Gulf, page 147) Meanwhile in northern Iraq, Kurdish separatists were gearing up for their own shot at the regime. As far back as 1961 ? seven years before Saddam Hussein came to power - they had been staging violent attacks on Iraq's central government, trying to leverage off a piece of the country to form their own fledgling state.

Accepting Washington's pronouncements about a vanquished Iraqi military, up to 400,000 Kurds undertook a ferocious spree of mayhem that rivaled that of the Shia. According to Mackay, in Kirkuk "no one bothered to count how many servants of Baghdad were shot, beheaded, or cut to shreds with the traditional dagger stuck in the cummerbund of every Kurdish man. By the time Kurdish rage had exhausted itself, piles of corpses lay in the streets awaiting removal by bulldozers." (The Reckoning, page 26)

<http://usa.mediamonitors.net/content/view/full/433> /

Group 5: Rebels killed by the Baathist regime when putting down the Shiite and Kurdish rebellions (Saddam would merely argue that he did exactly what the US is doing now in Iraq -- using all necessary means to restore stability. How do you convict him for that?)

Group 6: Victims of the current invasion, estimated to be between 35,000 and 100,000 Iraqis. The US and UK killed these people.

[tranche]

22. stinking trial lawyers! n/t

[Hobarticus]

24. Just another "frivolous lawsuit"....

Wasting the courts' time. Grumble grumble....

[Demeter]

25. And Who Could Blame Them?

Let's hope they settle for reparations and war trials for the misadministration.

[Mojambo]

26. Well, getting sued sure beats the hell out of the whole car bomb thing.

[Carla in Ca]

27. If they want an apology and reparations what do you think

their feelings for Saddam are? Would they try to get him released?

[daleo]

28. What about the ob-gyns of the neo-con philosophy

How can they give birth to a new order in the middle east if they have these pesky lawsuits to deal with? Is it their fault if their plans are still-born? Think about the cost of geo-political malpractice insurance. Where will the next Strauss or Nietzsche come from?

[Solon]

29. As far as I'm aware of...

this would be a civil action, and also that US federal courts have jurisdiction over such cases. Correct me if I'm wrong but I think Foriegn Citizens are allowed to sue for damages in US court, even if the defendant is the US Government itself. A holdover from some Holocaust lawsuits I believe.

[leftofthedial]

30. and we think $200 B is too much dough

the pricetag for illegally bombing a country into rubble and killing tens of thousands of people will be staggering.

[Mister K]

31. I would love to see this

It would cost the country dearly but I think that no country has the right NOT to be held accountable for its actions.

I would also love to see Bush brought up in a war crimes tribunal in Iraq. Chaney too.

[ckramer]

32. Did you guys click on the video link in the first reply?

I don't see any responses out of it.

Check it out!

[alcuno]

35. I clicked on it.

That's the video of the incident that was in the news. No one asked who the people were or why they were there. Just "took them out."

[are_we_united_yet]

34. I guess they got a good dose of American Democracy afterall!

[FloridaPat]

36. Does that mean Iraq wants to leave the coalition?

[Pithy Cherub]

40. Iraqi's are learning

the full range of American services... This certainly puts the hot fudge topping on the hearts and flowers debacle courtesy of this administration. Oh the irony! Ending his administration the same way * began it: With a lawsuit!

[Tight_rope]

43. Good!...Take back all the money we stoled!