US troops - Documents Released Over Torture In Iraq
Over 400,000 documents have been released on the website wikileak - suggesting US troops tortured Iraqes after the invasion in 2003 upto 2009. This will obviously not help troops on all sides who are in Iraq fighting at present and could fuel more attacks. I think an officer who is found to do this should be kicked out of the army. Unfortunatly they need to find the ones who have done this.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-11611319
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-11611319
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The truth doesn't put lives at risk, it's lies that put lives at risk.
It was lies about WMD, lies about Al Qaeda connections, lies about yellowcake from Niger which put lives at risk, our troops lives and millions of Iraqi lives. Without those lies there would be no war and no lives lost.
Give the officer who told the truth a medal for services to humanity and prosecute those who told the lies.
Yes, I couldn't agree more. US troops just go in with all guns blazing. They are all a disgrace to the military. She is only interested incase they attack the US again.
Indeed. That just shows where the priorities of 'Hillary' lie.
She doesn't care about the atrocities.
I think he/she should be given a Nobel Peace prize. It would make a change from it being given to warmongerers like Obama or racists like Shimon Perez.
The most shocking documentery I ever saw was that of an famous Iraq christian pianist called Samir Peter. It was shown on BBC 2 a few years ago and the filming was duiring the worst of the violence in Iraq, truly shocking stuff, wonder if its on youtube? Can't remember the name of the documentery but should be traceable.
Just had a look, looks like its called The Liberace Of Baghdad
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Liberace_of_Baghdad
Poor comparison, the USA a freedom loving democratic state that likes to hold itself up as an example to the world (at least in their eyes) vs a brutal communist totalitarian dictatorship = FAIL!
Pathetic !!! Do you not see that stuff like this needs to be made public. Sweeping it under the carpet and dismissing thousands of deaths like this only creates resentment and hatred for the west.
Behaviour like this makes a total mockery of so-called western democracies who try to enforce their brand of democracy on countries like Afghanistan and Iraq . Preaching western values and then using innocent people for target practice just makes the west more insecure and is used as justification for terrorist attacks .
I agree with you, but the ones preaching western values are not the ones upto their necks in the worst of human behaviour, and who could die at any moment.
All types of people are in the military, and some will behave very badly when confronted with such situations.
It has always been the case throughout history during war.
It doesn't mean it is right, but in such circumstances, normal ways of living go out of the window for some.
We cant have it both ways. If we are they and involved among the worst scum of the earth, then we are going to be doing bad things ourselves too from time to time. That's war.
It pains me to read some of the stuff. How worse was it than what Iraqis already had to contend with in Saddam?
Freedom truly did come at a price - one I don't think can ever be repaid.
Makes me feel ashamed and depressed for living in the luxury of the UK - powerless to do anything to help my fellow countrymen over there.
EDIT: Some of the stuff about the ISF is just as bad.
I understand that there are thugs in every organisation but there are rules of warfare and in particular, the treatment of civilians, that are supposed to be taught to soldiers going to war are there not ?
When these atrocities are used to justify terror attacks on the west in years to come we have only ourselves to blame.
What are you talking about? What does this have to do with the topic? Totally illogical nonsense. You'll be saying there's no oil in the Middle East next.
Isn't that what the UK and US are doing in Afghanistan atm ? Well besides the securing of oil and gas pipelines.
The interferance of the west eg, the arming of Bin Laden to stop the Russians gaining control in Afghanistan ,is one of the things that started this.
It's not just us that does it though, although we do see it as wrong, and can never be happy with it.
There are stories throughout the ages of decent people going to war, and behaving in barbaric ways. Some find it easier than others, and thankfully most dont resort to such tactics, but we have to realise that when people are placed in such situations, some will forget the training manuals.
I'm not sure how it will ever be stopped whenever wars take place.
Like I say, I'd be all for pulling out of all these places completely because you cant civilise people that dont want to be.
Leave them all the their head-chopping, war-mongering, child-maiming, stoning or whatever else makes them happy. But then dont complain when we dont interfere.
Who started what depends on how far back you wanted to go. Presumably all the Taliban had to do after 9/11 was hand over Bin Laden and none of this would have happened.
But isnt it also true that normal Afghan people want us there as long as possible to help try to secure their country?
I can understand any arguements for/against war, as long as people realise if we're there, we're there and bad things happen in wars.
If we're not, then we dont get involved in any of these countries again, no matter what happens internally.
I would have thought we had moved on from "barbaric ways" but I do understand that some people will always take pleasure in the degredation and murder of others. They have the power of life and death over others, probably for the first time in their lives.
Where were their commanding officers when these things were happening ? There have been too many of these accounts in the last few years for it to be passed of as just a few bad eggs.
It is just a few bad eggs though.
I believe Bin Laden could have been caught if they really wanted him but they, particularly the US, needed a bogeyman to scare people enough to continue with this quagmire they've gotten themselves into.
If reports are true, more and more are joining the Taliban and the west are losing the war. What has all that loss of life , torture etc achieved except to radicalize more people and breed hatred for the west.
Did anyone ask the Afghan people what they wanted ?
They asked Hamid Karzai who said yes to foreign interferance because he wanted to hold onto power at any cost. He is a puppet for western interests in the area, not a representative of the ordinary Afghani people.
We don't know how many have been involved but when you have Clinton condemning the whistleblowers instead of the loss of innocent lives and the atrocities committed in her country's name it looks like the administration condones these actions.
F*ck it, let's just pull out and leave them all to it.