Amnesty International Against Torture, Sort of
You would think that by now, Amnesty International would have stepped into the fray and said something about the behavior of the terrorists in Iraq. Nope! Up to this point these purported do-gooders have only criticized the US for their actions in Iraq. With the news of the torture of two US soldiers in Iraq, AI has finally come out against the terrorists, sort of. Amnesty International’s Larry Cox released this to the press:
Larry Cox, Amnesty International USA’s executive director, made the following statement in response to the alleged killing and torture of two U.S. soldiers in Ramadi, Iraq:
“Amnesty International, first and foremost, extends its sincerest condolences to the families of Pfc. Kristian Menchaca and Pfc. Thomas L. Tucker for their tragic loss. We are deeply disturbed by reports that these two soldiers were brutally tortured. These reports, if proven true, may rise to the level of war crimes.
Amnesty International condemns the torture or summary killing of anyone who has been taken prisoner and reiterates that such acts are absolutely prohibited in international humanitarian law. This prohibition applies at all times, even during armed conflict. There is no honor or heroism in torturing or killing individuals. Those who order or commit such atrocities must be prosecuted to the full extent of the law without recourse to the death penalty.
Amnesty International again calls on armed groups in Iraq to immediately cease all executions, torture or ill-treatment of people. Armed groups, like other parties to the conflict in Iraq, are required to comply strictly with international law and remain accountable for their actions.” (emphasis added by TRS)
“…may rise to the level of war crimes…” Even when AI comes out against those who tortured these two soldiers, they are hedging their bets. Why can’t Cox just call torture a war crime? According to reports, the bodies of these two soldiers had been so messed up that DNA testing had to be conducted to verify the identity if the two bodies found were those of the missing soldiers.
Maybe Amnesty International can not call the torture of these two soldiers a war crime because doing so would put him on the side of the US, and he can’t let that happen. How else can you explain Amnesty International turning a blind eye towards the killing of innocent men, women, and children in Iraq by these terrorists? If Cox’s bunch does not say anything about the terrorist strike in a senior citizen’s home, I would really have to question their sincerity.
Violence across Iraq Tuesday killed at least 11 people and wounded 60, including two dead and two injured when a suicide bomb exploded inside a senior citizens home in Basra, police said.
The bomb apparently was strapped to someone who walked inside the home for elderly Iraqi women in the morning and detonated it, police in the southern city said.
When is Amnesty International going to learn, the terrorists are the bad guys, not the US. They are the ones who intentionally target innocents.
Hat tip: Michelle Malkin
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I would betcha that those soldiers would be alive today if Bush hadn’t started a war - under false pretenses, no less - and sent them over there to kill or be killed. But you, my war-loving friend, shouldn’t be surprised one little bit that American troops are gonna be tortured and killed when captured. Remember, you are the history genius that knows about history and especially Viet Nam. But, I guess torture and death were not a fate faced by troops in that war and history does not repeat itself.
And certainly a righteous country like yours would never ever in a million years torture captives, and all those pictures that showed abuse, torture and torment in our prisons were a figment of my imagination. Personally, I’m not fond of unnecessary war like you are, so I hope you enjoy the hell that war is.
Send a Clear Message…
President Bush needs to tell the American people what happened to those Soldiers. He needs to let the people know what we are fighting and quit white-washing the actions of our enemies….
kd, if we tortured anyone, where is the proof? List a reference. And don’t give me any Abu Ghrab crap, that was not torture. Slowly sawing off the heads of captives is torture. The only country who even half-way follows the Geneva convention in wartime is the US.
For your information, I do not love war. I don’t even like war. I study war to understand it, to teach it. War is the failure of diplomacy. Sometimes war is necessary, sometimes only the threat of war is needed.
Understand this, we did not start this war. Usama bin Ladden declared war on the US years ago during the Clinton administration. He did not take his job nor the defense of this country seriously. We paid for his mistake on 9/11. I do not want to look into the faces of the children of tommorrow when the US is attacked again and tell them we had the chance to end terrorism once and for all, but lacked the courage.
War is never good, but sometimes it is our only option. Choosing not to act may very well lead to history repeating itself.
Chuck writes:
kd, if we tortured anyone, where is the proof? List a reference.
In the first place there are different forms of torture. In the second place, why was the White House opposed to McCain’s anti-torture amendment?
Then we have the Justice Dept. memo saying that torture was part of the presiden’t war powers. Cheney has said he wants continued use of, god I love this euphemism, ‘enhanced interrogation techniques’ such as waterboarding. And we have the CIA’s secret ‘black jails.’ Gee, I wonder what in the hell goes on in secret jails. I betcha Saddam would know about that kinda cool stuff.
Only an idiot would think we are not as guilty as the other side.
kd, you have got to be French or at least have a bit of French in you. Just the rumor that the Germans were coming in WWII sent the French army scampering. And you, just the rumor that we may have tortured others has sent you scampering. What has the US done to make you hate this country so much, to believe the worst in everything we do. I asked you to show proof. None was given. Your justification, Vice President Dick Cheney did not want a anti-torture act passed. Take a look at that bill. It would have made something as innocuous as sleep deprivation as crime. It would have ham-strung our intelligence gathering ability.
You are spending way too much time with the tin hats. Everything is not a conspiracy.
Chuck writes:
It would have ham-strung our intelligence gathering ability.
You say the funniest things.
Here’s Colin Powell before the UN Security Council making a case for war: “Iraq today harbors a deadly terrorist network headed by Abu Musab Zarqawi, an associate and collaborator of Osama bin Laden and his al Qaeda lieutenants.”
Here’s the CIA as reported by Rueters on that same subject: WASHINGTON - A CIA report has found no conclusive evidence that former Iraqi President Saddam Hussein harbored Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, which the Bush administration asserted before the invasion of Iraq.
“There’s no conclusive evidence the Saddam Hussein regime had harbored Zarqawi,” a U.S. official said on Tuesday about the CIA findings.
Intelligence means nothing to Presidents that are given the power to wage war - for fun and profit. A damn one-eyed potato can see that, but you can’t.
Thats kinda funny since Saddam Hussein gave aid and comfort to Zawaqawi before the war. It is also interesting to note the number of countries who said and still say Saddam was harboring terrorists.
btw, your last comment is funny. Though I have to admit, I have never seen a one-eyed potato.
Chuck writes:
Thats kinda funny since Saddam Hussein gave aid and comfort to Zawaqawi before the war. It is also interesting to note the number of countries who said and still say Saddam was harboring terrorists.
Yup, real funny, either the CIA is lying or members of the executive branch lied. You have a perverted sense of humor, like you have a perverted sense of patriotism. Personally, I find no humor in it.