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International-UN-NGOs
Senior UN Official Claims US Starves Iraqi Civilians
2005-10-15
But of course the Independent reports this as fact.
Naturally. They're independent, ya know.
A senior United Nations official has accused US-led coalition troops of depriving Iraqi civilians of food and water in breach of humanitarian law.

Human rights investigator Jean Ziegler said they had driven people out of insurgent strongholds that were about to be attacked by cutting supplies. Mr Ziegler, a Swiss-born sociologist, said such tactics were in breach of international law.
And who better than the Swiss to lecture us on international law? Well, okay, the Belgians, but who else?
A US military spokesman in Baghdad denied the allegations.

"A drama is taking place in total silence in Iraq, where the coalition's occupying forces are using hunger and deprivation of water as a weapon of war against the civilian population," Mr Ziegler told a press conference. He said coalition forces were using "starvation of civilians as a method of warfare."

"This is a flagrant violation of international law," he added.

Mr Ziegler said he understood the "military rationale" when confronting insurgents who do not respect "any law of war". But ...
There's always a 'but' ...
... he insisted that civilians who could not leave besieged cities and towns for whatever reason should not suffer as a result of this strategy.

Lieutenant Colonel Steve Boylan, a US military spokesman, later rejected the accusations. "Any allegations of us withholding basic needs from the Iraqi people are false," he said.

Even though some supplies had been delayed during fighting, he argued that "all precautions" were being taken to take care of civilians. "It does not do relief supplies any good if you have them going into a firefight," he said.

The Geneva Conventions forbid depriving civilians of food and water. Cutting off food supply lines and destroying food stocks is also forbidden.

Mr Ziegler, who opposed the US-led invasion of Iraq, said he would urge the UN General Assembly to condemn this practice when he presented his yearly report on 27 October.
Since he's reporting to the UN, it's not like he needs any proof or anything.
Posted by:lotp

#9  Ziegler is a pretty well known swiss anti-globo activist/moonbat (depending on your preferences), he's been making similar charges against western capitalism in the past, always in an alarmist, strident tone.

I've several of his articles somewhere on my pc, IIRC in at least one of his books he's warning against an apocalyptical new feudalism brought by globalization (again seen as an americanization), in which the lords would be the corporations and the imperialist countries. In fact, I think he might suscribe to the Empire/Multitude theory by Toni Negri and co.
He's one of the usual suspects.
Posted by: anonymous5089   2005-10-15 08:46  

#8  Self-righteous flaming asshole for a self-aggrandizing pretentious collection of utter liars, con artists, schemers, ponces, pooftas, pricks, wankers, and snobs - the Vulture Elites of the UN. He needs a massive dose of pucker in his diet to stem such diarrheal attacks. They all do.
Posted by: .com   2005-10-15 07:45  

#7  Jean Ziegler is a kind of a mixture of George Galloway and Michael Moore.

U.N. SECRETARY-GENERAL DENOUNCES RIGHTS EXPERT FOR "IRRESPONSIBLE" REMARKS; GROUPS CALL FOR ZIEGLER'S RESIGNATION (07/08/05)
http://www.unwatch.org/speeches/PR080705.html

Letter from US Congres about Ziegler (08/02/05)
http://www.unwatch.org/pdf_files/Congress-Wibisono_letter.pdf
Posted by: SwissTex   2005-10-15 16:12  

#6  Mr Ziegler, a Swiss-born sociologist, said such tactics were in breach of international law.

Tranzis has a very interesting view on what constitutes an international law: "whatever I and my friends decide it is."
Posted by: gromgoru   2005-10-15 14:38  

#5  Guys like him are springing up like dandelions in the yard. They are parasitic moonbats, living off people's taxes, like they own the place.
Posted by: Alaska Paul   2005-10-15 13:53  

#4  Definitely a candidate for axehandle diplomacy. I'll put him on my list. Durn thing's getting LONG!
Posted by: Old Patriot   2005-10-15 10:41  

#3  Give him 10,000 mics just before a speech and then send in the men with the buterfly nets.
Posted by: 3dc   2005-10-15 10:10  

#2  Is there a way to tell this supid Mr Ziegler, a Swiss-born sociologist to stop whining and to come up with the solutions?. I am sick and tired of these stupids who keep on complainig and offer no rational solution to the problems except siding with the terrorists. These supids have to understand a very basic fact that those who regard no human rights deserve no consideration of human rights. In the situations of the word wide islamofascism, any thing I ever here from the huuman rihgt's organisation is really stupid. They are not supposed to protect the violance. Just look at their comments, the entire thing they are doing is to protect the nationals and indivisuals involved in the genocide. The free wold is doing a damm stupidity to support these human rights organigatios of the old world.
Posted by: Annon   2005-10-15 08:39  

#1  So what?, this is just example number 34,567,443 of a UN functionary being stupid and anti-US.
Anyone that listens to anthing that comes out of the UN regarding the US has been fed bullshit for so long they accept crap like this as the truth.
Always amazes me how these "human rights investigators" whatever that might be, are more concerned with bashing the US than actually doing what their job title suggests in countries that are actual abusers.
I guess their just giving the crowd what they want.


Posted by: JerseyMike   2005-10-15 08:36  

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