Monday, November 07, 2005

 

Next? Rape Room Redux!

If the following story proves true, we're expanding our repertoire of war crimes:

In a documentary to be broadcast by RAI, the Italian state broadcaster, this morning, a former American soldier who fought at Fallujah says: "I heard the order to pay attention because they were going to use white phosphorus on Fallujah. In military jargon it's known as Willy Pete.

"Phosphorus burns bodies, in fact it melts the flesh all the way down to the bone ... I saw the burned bodies of women and children. Phosphorus explodes and forms a cloud. Anyone within a radius of 150 metres is done for."

Photographs on the website of RaiTG24, the broadcaster's 24-hours news channel, www.rainews24.it, show exactly what the former soldier means. Provided by the Studies Centre of Human Rights in Fallujah, dozens of high-quality, colour close-ups show bodies of Fallujah residents, some still in their beds, whose clothes remain largely intact but whose skin has been dissolved or caramelised or turned the consistency of leather by the shells.

For those of you with strong stomachs, here's the Italian news report. (The American ex Marine is easy enough to understand.)

We've come full circle, folks. The rump reason given for our attack on Iraq was that "he gassed his own people," and that that was so bad, we had to invade.

So when can we expect the UN to ride to our rescue, and put Bushco in the dock at the ICC?

posted by Michael 9:52 PM