[BOBT12]

As you see the abuse in Iraq has been going on almost from the begining of the war.

Multiply Haditha By Thousands

Violence against innocent Iraqi civilians is widespread, and it has been for years

The Iraqi government has decided to launch its own investigation into the killing of 24 people by U.S. Marines in the western town Haditha last November.

The raid came to light after a local Iraqi videotaped the killings. The tape told a story dramatically different from the bland assertion by the U.S. military in November last year that some people died in a roadside bomb blast.

Reports of the massacre were carried recently by Time magazine. The killing has since then snowballed into a major controversy.

“The crime and misery of Haditha is a terrible crime where women and children were eliminated,” Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki told reporters. Maliki also said his government would set up a joint task force with the U.S. military to examine how foreign armies in Iraq carry out raids.

Violence against civilians is “common among many of the multinational forces,” the new Iraqi Prime Minister said. Many troops had “no respect for citizens, smashing civilian cars and killing on a suspicion or a hunch.”

That the occupation forces do this is well known. “We describe this kind of incident as ‘normal’ because it has happened over and over, not because it is normal or because the Iraqi people accept it,” Iraqi lawyer Nezar al-Samarai told IPS.

“It’s happened a lot and there has been no reaction from the U.S. government to stop it. So people will say it’s normal.”

[...]During that raid, U.S. soldiers also attacked a neighbouring home for the disabled. “The military killed three and injured another two,” he said. “That was not because they did anything, of course. They were disabled. The other two are still in hospital, and we do not know what will happen to them.”

Emphasis added.

http://www.gnn.tv/articles/2326/Mult...a_By_Thousands

Media Crimes Sanitize War Crimes in Iraq

“Can you believe it?” Yes, I can believe it. Haditha is coming to light because conscientious marines spoke out and then ex-marine Congressman John Murtha spoke out and then TIME picked it up.

Our fearless TV journalists did not break the story.

CNN had it, but, according to Damon, didn’t realize it.

Journalists like Dahr Jamail have been calling attention to many massacres that have gone mostly unreported—even when US journalist were there like at Fallujah which was played up for its drama and gun battles, but never fully contextualized or focused on the vast civilian casualties.

When atrocities occur, they are invariably described as “mistakes,” rarely crimes. What this means is that many media organizations are acting as accessories. War crimes often lead to media crimes and vice versa.

[...]The Administration fears that the reaction to the gore of the Haditha massacre will mark a turning point, not just a tipping point, in support for the war. Let’s hope they are right.

Emphasis added.

http://www.gnn.tv/articles/2324/Medi...Crimes_in_Iraq

Iraqi Doctor: 'U.S. Military Hides Many More Hadithas'

“The test will be whether the leadership in the Department of Defense and the administration does not try to confine these incidents in small compartments but looks to see if this is part of a large systemic problem,” Sen. Jack Reed of Rhode Island said on Fox News Sunday.

http://www.gnn.tv/articles/2338/Iraq..._More_Hadithas