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Iraq
Italian TV Alleges U.S. Used Chemical Weapons In Fallujah
2005-11-07
Rome, 7 Nov. (AKI) - A documentary to be aired on Tuesday by Italian state satellite TV channel RAI News 24 alleges that US troops used chemical weapons during their assault on the insurgent stronghold of Fallujah in November last year. The documentary - 'Fallujah - the hidden massacre' - uses witness accounts from former US soldiers, Fallujah residents, video footage and photographs, to support its claim that contrary to US State Department denials, white phosphorous was used indiscriminately on the city, causing terrible injuries to civilians, including women and children.

"I heard the order being issued to be careful because white phosphorous was being used on Fallujah. In military slang this is known as Willy Pete. Phosphorous burns bodies, melting the flesh right down to the bone," says one former US solider, interviewed by the documentary's director, Sigfrido Ranucci.
Wonder if he's anyone we'd know?
"I saw the burned bodies of women and children. The phosophorous explodes and forms a plume. Who ever is within a 150 metre radius has no hope," the former soldier adds.
Was it seared into your brain?
"A rain of fire came down on the city, and people targeted by the different coloured substances began to burn. We found people dead, with strange injuries, with their clothes intact," a biologist from Fallujah, Mohamad Tareq al-Deraji tells Ranucci.
No doubt a un-biased source

The evidence in 'Fallujah - the hidden massacre' claims to show the US forces did not use phosphorous in the legitimate way - to highlight enemy positions - but dropped the substance indiscriminately on the city, and on a massive scale. The documentary also shows the terrible damage wrought by the US bombardment of Fallujah, and the carnage to civilians, some of whom lay sleeping.

Equally disturbingly, a document in the report claims to prove that the U.S. forces have used the MK77 form of Napalm - the chemical used with devastating effect on civilians during the Vietnam war - on civilians in Iraq.

"I had gathered testimonials on the use of phosphorous and Napalm in Iraq from several refugees from Fallujah, and wanted to tell the world about it, but my kidnappers would not allow me to," said Italian journalist Giuliana Sgrena, held hostage in Iraq earlier this year, during the documentary.
Oh, her. Little Miss Roadblock Runner. Like her "kidnappers" wouldn't have wanted this so-called "war-crime" reported
The use of white phosophorous and Napalm is prohibited by UN conventions. Moroever, the United States signed up to the Chemical Weapons Convention in 1997.
Posted by:Steve

#17  WP makes very nice smoke to mark areas or keep an evil eye off you. It happens to be a nasty to the touch and inhalation. BFD. Each and any weapon can be misused against civilians. Think of all those folks buying munitions across the globe missing out on the 110, 120, 152 or 155mm WP shells that actually have a 150 meter effective radius ("no hope") as an antipersonnel munition in urban settings. Only slight exaggeration maybe?
Posted by: GrandpappysWP   2005-11-07 23:38  

#16  fine. anything against over-pressure from FAE?
Posted by: Frank G   2005-11-07 22:22  

#15  <sarcasm>Worse than Jenin!!</sarcasm>
Posted by: DMFD   2005-11-07 22:21  

#14  WP is kosher. The convention is designed to stop firebombing of cities like Dresden. Though the firebombing of Tokyo would be fine due to military production embedded within the civilian population. BTW, I do remember something about the World Trade Center buildings destroyed, and thousands incinerated, by 100 tons of aviation gas in the two 767's. The firebombing convention was violated on 9/11/2001. After that, I would lose no sleep if any city in the middle east was burned to the ground.
Posted by: ed   2005-11-07 22:06  

#13  The use of white phosophorous and Napalm is prohibited by UN conventions. Moroever, the United States signed up to the Chemical Weapons Convention in 1997.

Tell me again whats it say about IED's, suicide bombers in civilian areas, summary execution of non-combatants, and chopping POW's heads off?
Posted by: Besoeker   2005-11-07 21:18  

#12  I don't remember any evidence of Fallujah being the new Dresden. Here are some observations for rational Itailians:
1. Firebombing the city just as the USMC is storming the place would be tactical idiocy.
2. Willy-Pete was useful for couter-attacking Chinese positions on Pork Chop Hill, but would probably be distinctly less useful to troops wearing night vision and with access to the IR spectrum.
3. Does any non-deranged journalist claim that the USMC has access to invisible MOPP gear, because last I checked the Jarheads weren't sporting gas masks as they deloused the Muj-sewer.
Posted by: Super Hose   2005-11-07 21:01  

#11  If I recall correctly, these agents are approved for use against purely military targets, but not if non combatants can be affected. I also seem to recall that the U.S. did not sign this convention.
Posted by: Chuck Simmins   2005-11-07 21:01  

#10  Is Willy Pete really banned? I never felt safer than after throwing a WP granade in Viet Nam. It would sadden me considerably were they to be out-lawed. Willy Pete is a a soldier's best friend.

Traveller
Posted by: Traveller   2005-11-07 20:54  

#9  Really I do wish journalists would get a friggin bloody education before spouting off this crap.

Doesn't matter.

This isn't a report of news. It's propaganda. Like Vietnam-era claims that the Ma-deuce was against the laws of war, the point is to make people think the US committed war crimes.
Posted by: Robert Crawford   2005-11-07 20:51  

#8  Consumptive agents?
That's
COUGH
un
COUGH
American.
Posted by: T O Wolfe   2005-11-07 19:46  

#7  Next, they'll want fire banned by the UN as a "Consumptive Agent"!
Posted by: smn   2005-11-07 19:22  

#6  Hadn't the DoD better track down the "soldier" that was "interviewed", so that he and his associates can be tried in a proper court martial?
Posted by: trailing wife   2005-11-07 18:03  

#5  ...In related news US forces in Iraq were being investigated for war crimes. It seems as though some troops have been posting pictures of Janean Garofolo around Falluja in an attempt to unecessarily torture insurgents.
Posted by: macofromoc   2005-11-07 18:03  

#4  "...Italian journalist Giuliana Sgrena, held hostage in Iraq earlier this year..."
Ahh, there goes any "journalistic" credibility, right out the window.
And those are not "scare" quotemarks... those are "viciously skeptical" quotemarks. Bring on the next propaganda hackette with an improbably embroidered and obviously partisan fantasy.
Posted by: Sgt. Mom   2005-11-07 17:54  

#3  Last I checked Napalm, WP and Thermobarics are referred to as incendiaries and therefore not subject to the Chemical Weapons conventions. Really I do wish journalists would get a friggin bloody education before spouting off this crap.
Posted by: Valentine   2005-11-07 17:51  

#2  And anyway, there's a difference between a chemical and "chemical weapons."
Posted by: Rory B. Bellows   2005-11-07 17:31  

#1  If this isn't just another in a long series of Big Steaming Piles, it's probably just a result of our hitting one of their chemical weapons caches during the attack/assault/siege/thingy.
Posted by: SLO Jim   2005-11-07 16:58  

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