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| Iraq |
| Iraq militants 'guilty of war crimes' |
| 2005-10-02 |
| MILITANT insurgent groups responsible for killing thousands of Iraqi civilians over the past two years are guilty of war crimes and crimes against humanity, Human Rights Watch charges today. In a report chronicling the killing of an estimated 15,000 men, women and children by insurgents, the organisation insists that international law applies equally to US-led forces as well as those claiming to resist foreign occupation. âThe armed conflict in Iraq is regulated by the 1949 Geneva Conventions and customary international laws,â says the report, Iraq: Insurgent Groups Responsible for War Crimes. Many insurgent groups are operating in Iraq, from Islamic extremists to members of the ousted Baath party and Sunni Muslim nationalists. Three groups are blamed for most of the worst abuses: al-Qaeda in Iraq, headed by Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, Ansar al-Sunna (Supporters of the Sunni) and Ansar al-Islam (Supporters of Islam). Human Rights Watch has produced numerous reports critical of the US military and the Iraqi Governmentâs behaviour since the invasion in 2003. Sarah Leah Whitson, who heads the groupâs Middle East and Africa division, said it was important that insurgents were also called to account. The report coincides with fears that foreign fighters in Iraq, responsible for some of the worst outrages, may return home and use similar tactics against pro-Western governments in the Arab world and beyond. The claim was based on captured documents found with Abu Azzam, a commander in al-Zarqawiâs group, who was killed last month in Baghdad. âWe got hold of a very important letter from Abu Azzam to Zarqawi asking him to begin to move a number of Arab fighters to the countries they came from to transfer their experience in car bombings in Iraq,â Bayan Jabor, the Iraqi Interior Minister, said. A report by the Centre for Strategic and International Studies said that there were about 30,000 insurgent fighters in Iraq, with foreign volunteers making up to 10 per cent. |
| Posted by:Captain America |
| #12 In related news, Human Rights Watch today stated that the Spanish Inquisition was 'bad'. But they hastened to add that they ascribed no blame whatsoever to the current socialist government of Spain. |
| Posted by: DMFD 2005-10-02 23:33 |
| #11 Best. Rant. Ever! |
| Posted by: Comic-book Guy 2005-10-02 23:08 |
| #10 Fine rant at the link Ptah , fine rant. Thank you for the link. |
| Posted by: Sock Puppet O´ Doom 2005-10-02 22:35 |
| #9 Too late, ya whore. |
| Posted by: Ptah 2005-10-02 21:50 |
| #8 "Sarah Leah Whitson, who heads the groupâs Middle East and Africa division, said it was important that insurgents were also called to account." Nice to know that HRW is paying attention to these little matters.Thank you, so very much. Is it time for a pledge drive in the US? Or in some other market that matters? |
| Posted by: Sgt. Mom 2005-10-02 21:20 |
| #7 Good luck with all that Sarah Leah Whitson. This group literally supports Terrorism. Excuse me while laugh. |
| Posted by: Sock Puppet O´ Doom 2005-10-02 21:03 |
| #6 War crimes? Does that imply that the 'insurgents' recognise some aspect of the Geneva Convention? |
| Posted by: Pappy 2005-10-02 20:55 |
| #5 Surely you can't be serious. |
| Posted by: Croque Ulainter9433 2005-10-02 20:49 |
| #4 Sarah Leah Whitson, who heads the groupâs Middle East and Africa division, said it was important that insurgents were also called to account. Really? are the poor rebels/militants/insurgents as bad as the US Military. Unbelievable! |
| Posted by: SwissTex 2005-10-02 20:43 |
| #3 My first thought was that it's about time that the 'Human Rights' so-called community has finally gotten round to condemning terrorists killing civilians. Then I realized that it was only based on the fact that a captured letter admitting to car-bombings was found. In terms of proportionality with the repeated condemnation of the US, this amounts to a nominal 'slap on the wrist' for the terrorists. |
| Posted by: Wherenter Glomoper1682 2005-10-02 20:39 |
| #2 they were waiting for the rest of the Abu Grahib pics to be released, to balance: throatcutting vs panties on the head = zero sum |
| Posted by: Frank G 2005-10-02 20:39 |
| #1 MILITANT insurgent groups responsible for killing thousands of Iraqi civilians over the past two years are guilty of war crimes and crimes against humanity Two years? And Human Rights Watch is just now noticing? Allow me to express my contempt for this useless organization. |
| Posted by: SteveS 2005-10-02 20:37 |