Iraqi prime minister accused of murdering detainees

[IndianaGreen]

For those that have convinced themselves that we must "stay the course" in Iraq and keep troops there until things are "stable", here is some food for thought:

Iraqi prime minister accused of murdering detainees
By James Conachy
19 July 2004

In an exclusive report in the Sydney Morning Herald and Age newspapers, two Iraqi men claim to have witnessed Iyad Allawi, the US-installed Iraqi interim prime minister, murder six handcuffed and blindfolded prisoners. The summary executions allegedly occurred in mid-June, while Allawi was visiting the Al-Amariyah security center in Baghdad.

<snip>

Allawi has a particularly unsavory past, which is well known in Washington. He was an alleged spy and hit-man for the Baathist dictatorship until 1975, an agent of British and American intelligence agencies from the 1980s, a collaborator with the US ambitions to conquer Iraq in the 1990s and a supporter of the American invasion of his country in 2003.

A recent article in the New York Times, citing comments by former CIA agents, alleged that Allawi’s organization, the Iraqi National Accord (INA), had been involved in a series of bombings in Iraq in the mid-1990s that killed a number of civilians. The INA includes a significant number of former Baathist military officers and intelligence officials.

In an accompanying article entitled “Hard Man for a Tough Country”, McGeough cites the opinion of former CIA case officer, Reuel Marc Gerecht, who told the New Yorker: “He (Allawi) was a very effective operator and a true believer. Two facts stand out about Allawi. One, he likes to think of himself as a man of ideas; and two, his strongest virtue is that he’s a thug.”

http://www.wsws.org/articles/2004/jul2004/alla-j19.shtml

[mhr]

1. One Thug Begets Another Thug Begets Another Apologist

Never Forget The Face Of American Fascism'THIS IS NO DIFFERENT THAN WHAT HAPPENS AT THE SKULL & BONES INITIATION...I'M TALKING ABOUT PEOPLE HAVING A GOOD TIME. THESE PEOPLE -- YOU EVER HEARD OF EMOTIONAL RELEASE? YOU EVER HEARD OF NEEDING TO BLOW SOME STEAM OFF?'

[true grit]

2. ohmygosh!!!

He has the identical resume` as Saddam Hussein. At least we're consistent when we pick 'em.

[hansolsen]

3. Yes, and barely a ripple in the Corporate owned and managed media

We once had a free press in America. It is now largely gone. Thank
God for the Internet. With the Internet, we may someday get our free press back.

[Odd Little Man]

4. History loves to repeat

And people thought those dictators we put in power in the 50s, 60s & 70s in South America were bad.