Mass Graves Dug to Deal With Death Toll

[babylonsister]

http://www.afterdowningstreet.org/?q=node/24795

Mass Graves Dug to Deal With Death Toll
Submitted by davidswanson on Tue, 2007-07-17 20:30. Media

By Ahmed Ali, Inter Press Service, http://dahrjamailiraq.com

BAQUBA, Jul 17 (IPS) - The largest morgue in Diyala province is overflowing daily. Officials told IPS they have had to dig mass graves to dispose of bodies.

More and more bodies of victims of the ongoing violence are being found every day in Baquba, capital city of the province, 50km northeast of Baghdad.

"The morgue receives an average of four or five bodies everyday," Nima Jima'a, a morgue official, told IPS. "Many more are dropped in rivers and farms -- or it is sometimes the case they are buried by their killers for other reasons. The number we record here is only a fraction of those killed."

Ambulances, now able to move again after weeks of restrictions, have been removing bodies of victims from the current fighting. But they have also found skulls and bones, evidence of other killings long ago.

Dealing with these remains is becoming difficult. Like the rest of the city, the morgue suffers from continuing lack of electricity. Over the last two weeks, two of its refrigerators have been shut down. The smell of decomposing bodies hits visitors 100 metres away.

Morgue officials told IPS that a local U.S. military commander recently ordered them to bury all bodies within three days.

"We got 30 bodies out of the refrigerator on Sunday, put a number on each, and put them in plastic bags provided by U.S. troops," morgue official Kareem al-Rubaee told IPS. "We asked families to have a look at the bodies. Then, they were buried collectively."

more...

[coco77]

1. Who will be left to run the country...

this is a genocide now.

[DeSwiss]

2. In his most optimistic remarks...

...since the U.S. troop buildup began, Gen. Peter Pace, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said Tuesday that parts of Iraq have undergone a "sea change" in security in recent months, and this will influence his recommendation to President Bush on how long to continue the current strategy.

He was asked whether this would inform his thinking about whether to continue the current strategy, with extra U.S. troops battling to secure Baghdad and Anbar province.

"It will because what I'm hearing now is a sea change that is taking place in many places here," he replied. "It's no longer a matter of pushing al-Qaida out of Ramadi, for example, but rather _ now that they have been pushed out _ helping the local police and the local army have a chance to get their feet on the ground and set up their systems."

http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2007/07/17/ap/middleeast/main3066191.shtml

Right. I suppose the "sea-change" hasn't gotten to Baquba yet...

[NNN0LHI]

3. This is why we really can't leave

Someone is going to be digging up these mass graves if we ever left.

Media from the entire world will be there watching too.

Someone would have to pay.

Don

[razors edge]

4. Better than

having them dig up mass graves of our soldiers after they get overrun.

[NNN0LHI]

5. Those soldiers can get on the transports and come home

The Iraqis can't go anywhere. They are already home.

Don

[razors edge]

7. That is the inevitable result of

trusting and supporting the United States Government, isn't it? It has not worked well for anyone in the past, what would make them think they would be different?

Sucks to be them but they decided to trust a Bush, and just like the Bushies here, they will come to resent that stupid decision.

Sound cold but thats life. We will be lucky if we don't end up just like them even without supporting him, because like it or not, we trusted the United States government, just like them, and it's soon to be our day in the barrel.

[formercia]

6. Killing them over there so they won't be voting us out of office here

Be it the Native Americans,Colombia, Guatemala or a hundred other places where the powers that be feel threatened.

http://journals.democraticunderground.com/formercia/30