[Vision2020] US War Crimes In Afghanistan
Tbertruss@aol.com
Tbertruss@aol.com
Wed, 12 May 2004 19:00:49 EDT
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=20
Visionaries:
The US committed numerous war crimes in Afghanistan before we invaded Iraq.=20=
=20
US forces comitted or sanctioned torture and murder described and documented=
=20
in a documentary released two years ago, and other sources have also documen=
ted=20
these facts. To have a full accounting of US involvement in war crimes sinc=
e=20
9/11 demands a lot more than just charging a few disposable soldiers at the=20
bottom of the food chain for a few abuses in Iraq.
The article posted below was taken from this link. There are other related=20
articles there.
http://www.iol.co.za/index.php?click_id=3D3&art_id=3Dqw1023894901416B265&set=
_id=3D1
These links contain more information on this subject: =A0
http://www.guardian.co.uk/afghanistan/story/0,1284,736324,00.html
http://www.japantimes.co.jp/cgi-bin/getarticle.pl5?nn20040314a5.htm
=A0 =20
=A0 Documentary of US 'war crimes' shocks Europe
June 12 2002 at 05:28PM
=20
=20
By Clive Freeman
Berlin - American soldiers have been involved in the torture and murder of=20
captured Taliban prisoners, and may have aided in the "disappearance" of up=20=
to=20
3=A0000 men in the region of Mazar-i-Sharif, according to Jamie Doran, an Ir=
ish=20
documentary film-maker.
Doran's latest film, Massacre At Mazar, was shown on Wednesday in in the=20
Reichstag, the German parliament building in Berlin, and there were immediat=
e=20
calls for an international commission to be set up to investigate charges ma=
de in=20
the documentary.
Andrew McEntee, a leading international human rights lawyer, who has viewed=20
the film footage and read full transcripts, believes there is prima facie=20
evidence of serious war crimes having been committed by American soldiers in=
=20
Afghanistan.
'The Americans did whatever they wanted' =20
McEntee, who was in Berlin for Wednesday's special screening, said war crime=
s=20
had been committed not just under international law but, also, "under the=20
laws of the United States itself".
Much of the footage shown in Doran's 20-minute documentary was taken=20
secretly, and although witnesses were said to be living in fear of reprisal=20=
from=20
within Afghanistan itself they had all agreed to appear at any future intern=
ational=20
war crimes tribunal to give evidence, it was claimed.
One witness in the film claimed he had seen an American soldier break an=20
Afghan prisoner's neck and pour acid on others. "The Americans did whatever=20=
they=20
wanted. We had no power to stop them," he alleged.
Sometimes prisoners who were beaten up and taken outside had "disappeared",=20
he said.
In other sequences witnesses, among them two men, claimed they had been=20
forced to drive into the desert with hundreds of Taliban prisoners.
The living were then summarily shot while 30 to 40 American soldiers=20
purportedly stood by, it was alleged. The prisoners had been taken there on=20=
the orders=20
of the local American commander, according to the documentary.
In the film, an Afghan witness admitted to killing prisoners himself, and=20
another officer, allegedly a senior officer in the army of deputy defence=20
minister Dostum's forces, was said to have gone into hiding following threat=
s to his=20
life.
The far-left Party of Democratic Socialism (PDS) arranged for the special=20
showing of Massacre At Mazar in the Reichstag. Party chairman Roland Claus w=
as=20
cautious regarding its content but did spoke of its attempt at "authenticity=
."
Andre Brie, a PDS member of the European Parliament, concerned by reports of=
=20
ill treatment of Taliban prisoners, said he would be in favour of an=20
international commission looking into "disturbing" questions raised by the f=
ilm.
At a press conference Brie said he had known of Doran's dangerous film=20
activity in Afghanistan, and had helped to support him financially.
The PDS party faction had wanted to obtain authentic footage of the war in=20
Afghanistan, he said.
The film was due to be screened at the European Parliament in Strasbourg=20
later on Wednesday evening. - Sapa-DPA=20
=20
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Visionaries:<BR>
<BR>
The US committed numerous war crimes in Afghanistan before we invaded Iraq.&=
nbsp; US forces comitted or sanctioned torture and murder described and docu=
mented in a documentary released two years ago, and other sources have also=20=
documented these facts. To have a full accounting of US involvement in=
war crimes since 9/11 demands a lot more than just charging a few disposabl=
e soldiers at the bottom of the food chain for a few abuses in Iraq.<BR>
<BR>
The article posted below was taken from this link. There are other rel=
ated articles there.<BR>
<BR>
<A HREF=3D"http://www.iol.co.za/index.php?click_id=3D3&art_id=3Dqw1023894901=
416B265&set_id=3D1">http://www.iol.co.za/index.php?click_id=3D3&art_id=
=3Dqw1023894901416B265&set_id=3D1</A><BR>
<BR>
These links contain more information on this subject: =A0<BR>
<BR>
<A HREF=3D"http://www.guardian.co.uk/afghanistan/story/0,1284,736324,00.html=
">http://www.guardian.co.uk/afghanistan/story/0,1284,736324,00.html</A><BR>
<BR>
<A HREF=3D"http://www.japantimes.co.jp/cgi-bin/getarticle.pl5?nn20040314a5.h=
tm">http://www.japantimes.co.jp/cgi-bin/getarticle.pl5?nn20040314a5.htm</A><=
BR>
<BR>
<BR>
<BR>
<BR>
<IMG SRC=3D"http://www.iol.co.za/images/templates/straps/strap_3.gif" WIDTH=
=3D"274" HEIGHT=3D"32" BORDER=3D"0" DATASIZE=3D"1000"><IMG SRC=3D"http://ww=
w.iol.co.za/images/templates/straps/adstrap_default.gif" WIDTH=3D"220" HEIGH=
T=3D"32" BORDER=3D"0" DATASIZE=3D"140"><BR>
<BR>
=A0 <BR>
=A0 Documentary of US 'war crimes' shocks Europe<BR>
<BR>
June 12 2002 at 05:28PM<BR>
<BR>
<BR>
<BR>
</FONT><FONT COLOR=3D"#000000" BACK=3D"#ffffff" style=3D"BACKGROUND-COLOR:=20=
#ffffff" SIZE=3D3 PTSIZE=3D12 FAMILY=3D"SANSSERIF" FACE=3D"Arial" LANG=3D"0"=
>By Clive Freeman<BR>
<BR>
Berlin - American soldiers have been involved in the torture and murder of c=
aptured Taliban prisoners, and may have aided in the "disappearance" of up t=
o 3=A0000 men in the region of Mazar-i-Sharif, according to Jamie Doran, an=20=
Irish documentary film-maker.<BR>
<BR>
Doran's latest film, Massacre At Mazar, was shown on Wednesday in in the Rei=
chstag, the German parliament building in Berlin, and there were immediate c=
alls for an international commission to be set up to investigate charges mad=
e in the documentary.<BR>
<BR>
Andrew McEntee, a leading international human rights lawyer, who has viewed=20=
the film footage and read full transcripts, believes there is prima facie ev=
idence of serious war crimes having been committed by American soldiers in A=
fghanistan.<BR>
<BR>
<B>'The Americans did whatever they wanted'</B> <BR>
McEntee, who was in Berlin for Wednesday's special screening, said war crime=
s had been committed not just under international law but, also, "under the=20=
laws of the United States itself".<BR>
<BR>
Much of the footage shown in Doran's 20-minute documentary was taken secretl=
y, and although witnesses were said to be living in fear of reprisal from wi=
thin Afghanistan itself they had all agreed to appear at any future internat=
ional war crimes tribunal to give evidence, it was claimed.<BR>
<BR>
One witness in the film claimed he had seen an American soldier break an Afg=
han prisoner's neck and pour acid on others. "The Americans did whatever the=
y wanted. We had no power to stop them," he alleged.<BR>
<BR>
Sometimes prisoners who were beaten up and taken outside had "disappeared",=20=
he said.<BR>
<BR>
In other sequences witnesses, among them two men, claimed they had been forc=
ed to drive into the desert with hundreds of Taliban prisoners.<BR>
<BR>
The living were then summarily shot while 30 to 40 American soldiers purport=
edly stood by, it was alleged. The prisoners had been taken there on the ord=
ers of the local American commander, according to the documentary.<BR>
<BR>
In the film, an Afghan witness admitted to killing prisoners himself, and an=
other officer, allegedly a senior officer in the army of deputy defence mini=
ster Dostum's forces, was said to have gone into hiding following threats to=
his life.<BR>
<BR>
The far-left Party of Democratic Socialism (PDS) arranged for the special sh=
owing of Massacre At Mazar in the Reichstag. Party chairman Roland Claus was=
cautious regarding its content but did spoke of its attempt at "authenticit=
y."<BR>
<BR>
Andre Brie, a PDS member of the European Parliament, concerned by reports of=
ill treatment of Taliban prisoners, said he would be in favour of an intern=
ational commission looking into "disturbing" questions raised by the film.<B=
R>
<BR>
At a press conference Brie said he had known of Doran's dangerous film activ=
ity in Afghanistan, and had helped to support him financially.<BR>
<BR>
The PDS party faction had wanted to obtain authentic footage of the war in A=
fghanistan, he said.<BR>
<BR>
The film was due to be screened at the European Parliament in Strasbourg lat=
er on Wednesday evening. - Sapa-DPA <BR>
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