US War Crimes & Geneva Convention

consider the source

The issue is exceptionally well researched and argued, and draws on published accounts from "mainstream" media and Pentagon press briefings. The legal precepts cited are taken directly from the Geneva Convention itself, and the "Law of War" Avalon resource at Yale University. The release earlier today of the videotaped CIA interrogation of American "Taleban" POW John Walker makes many of the arguments even more compelling, but the WS website has yet to be updated to reflect this additional evidence.

I must admit that originally I felt that the "World Socialist" thing diminished credibility somewhat, but I find the articles and analyses published by that organization very well done and not at all what one might expect. It's certainly in all our interests to "consider the source", but judgements must be based on the merits and not simply rejected because of preconceptions.

It's funny, I read their site, and out of all the far-left sites, they do on occasion have objective analysis. Then again, they periodically (every 3 weeks or so), verge into pure b.s. (Just a month ago they implied that the US govt. was aware in advance of the WTC and Pentagon attacks).

Anyways, for all their talk, and citing of the Geneva Convention, they cannot get around the fact that the people inside fougnt until they surrendered - the bitter end - after the NA flooded the basement.

Of course they omit the fact that when aide workers came into that basement prior to the surrender, they were shot at - and this is 3 days after the rebellion began.

You can see that the 'loony left' was all set to paint this as an atrocity - because originally it appeared that there were no survivors among the prisoners. Now however there is the difficult matter of the live prisoners.

As for the CIA agent killed - it's pretty clear (to me at least) that they were running a good-cop/bad-cop on Walker to get him to talk.

Finally, to compare this to My Lai - a genuine atrocity - diminishes not only the little credibility that the authors have, but diminishes the memory of the My Lai victims, as well as those Americans who stopped it.

contemporary account off the top of my head, no.

what happened however was that a nearby helicopter pilot heard of what was happening.

he swooped in and placed his helicopter in between some US soldiers and some of the vietnamese peasants. he then ordered his gunner to aim his machine gun at the US soldiers and told him to open fire if the US soldiers approached the vietnamese.

for this act he was awarded the congressional medal of honor, the highest award a US serviceman can get.

so, for research, you could go to the pentagon's website and look up all past medal of honor winners (not too many, so shouldn't be that hard).

as for hte issue at hand: a previous poster said it best. you surrender all of your geneva rights as a POW the moment you pick up a weapon or engage in hostile acts against your captors.

there's also the issue of whether or not the arab fighters were mercenaries, regulars, or irregulars. that status profoundly effects how the geneva conventions come into play, a fact that the website conveniently ignored

official declarations of war are no longer given.

so what?
congress essentially gave bush a thumbs up to attack afghanistan.

i already said that congress gave bush the go-ahead to wage war.

this barely differs from bush getting an official declaration of war from congress.

in other words, the checks and balances still exist

Can you believe it - we actually had an intelligent discourse on Indymedia! :)

Cheers to everyone - esp. Nessie who was big enough to post that he was incorrect.

You have my word that I will do the same - not that that ever happens mind you. :)

Regards,
PK

wow, surely a day that will go down in history.

yet to see someone admit he/she were wrong on anything more then a factual error however.

perhaps i shall begin aging some fine wine for that day when it comes in the far future.

actually, i don't drink wine.
so, maybe i should start aging some fine twinkies intead.

wow, surely a day that will go down in history.

yet to see someone admit he/she were wrong on anything more then a factual error however.

perhaps i shall begin aging some fine wine for that day when it comes in the far future.

actually, i don't drink wine.
so, maybe i should start aging some fine twinkies intead.

your site is nothing but a forum for your masters at the kgb either that or your a mouthpiece for bin ladin!!!!

how can you support people that enslave women!

murder women in the streets

and murder wantonly!!!

how!!!

your site is nothing but a forum for your masters at the kgb either that or your a mouthpiece for bin ladin!!!!

how can you support people that enslave women!

murder women in the streets

and murder wantonly!!!

how!!!

why don't you go to afganistan if you dare!