Recent Event Highlights: U.N.condemns shelling & blames Israel as Fire destroys AID, Israel attacks UN aid compound White Phosphorous Shells, Gaza UN Aid Compound in Flames from White Phosphorus Shelling, UN headquarters in Gaza destroyed by Israeli 'white phosphorus' shells, CNN: Israel defends munitions amid white phosphorus accusations, Israel's use of WP, and 31 more...
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The U.N. says Israeli artillery hit its aid headquarters compound in Gaza City, setting their buildings on fire. U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon condemned an attack on a U.N. relief agency's compound in Gaza City Thursday, which he and other U.N. officials say was committed by Israeli forces. U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon condemned an attack on a U.N. relief agency's compound in Gaza City Thursday, which he and other U.N. officials say was committed by Israeli forces. "[Israeli] Defense Minister Barak said to me it was a grave mistake and he took it very seriously," Ban said at a news conference in Tel Aviv with Israeli Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni. But Israeli government spokesman Mark Regev said the matter is still under investigation. When asked about Ban's comment, Regev said Defense Minister Ehud Barak actually told the U.N. chief that "if it was Israel's fire, it was a grave mistake." Regev said it was "not clear whose shells, whose fire hit the U.N. facility." "It could have been ours, it could have been Hamas'," Regev said. "This is being investigated." Israeli forces moved into Gaza City overnight. During the clash with Hamas fighters, the U.N. Relief and Works Agency headquarters complex -- located in a densely populated neighborhood -- was hit repeatedly by shrapnel and artillery. The burning compound emitted a massive pillar of billowing black smoke. Clashes around the compound in Gaza City made it impossible to extinguish the fires, UNRWA Director John Ging said. An artillery shell struck one building wounded three workers, and the compound's warehouse and workshop were burning out of control within an hour and a half, he said. "We warned the Israelis hour by hour through the night of the vulnerabilities here as the shells came closer and closer and shrapnel was coming into the compound on a regular occasion," Ging said. "Nonetheless, we have now been subjected to these direct hits." Ging the source of the fires as white phosphorus shells, whose use is restricted under international law. "It looks like phosphorus, it smells like phosphorus and it's burning like phosphorus," Ging said. "That's why I'm calling it phosphorus." The Israeli military did not immediately comment on the allegation. But the U.S.-based group Human Rights Watch has accused Israel of using white phosphorus shells in Gaza during its campaign against Hamas, the Palestinian militant group that has ruled Gaza since 2007. Human Rights Watch said that although the use of white phosphorus to obscure military movements is legal, the substance can burn civilians and start fires in the densely populated territory. The Israel Defense Forces initially denied using the ordnance. But by Monday, Israeli officials said only that any shells fired in Gaza "are in accordance with international law." Regev said Hamas is also armed with phosphorus shells and has fired them at Israelis. "Phosphorus shells were shot by Hamas from Gaza into Israel," Regev said Thursday. "That was documented yesterday." More than 1,000 Palestinians have been killed and nearly 5,000 wounded since the conflict began, Palestinian officials said Wednesday. Israel said 10 of its soldiers and three civilians have been killed and more than 100 soldiers have been wounded. Following the last two days of bombardment, the private relief agency CARE announced it was canceling its distribution of food and medical aid to the territory during Thursday's fighting as well. Read an aid worker's diary advertisement UNRWA spokesman Christopher Gunness said the agency had urged both Israel and Hamas, which has been firing rockets into southern Israel, to heed the "conscience of the world" and comply with a U.N. resolution that calls for a cease-fire. But he added, "I'm standing looking over the town of Beit Hanoun, and with every dull thud and every plume of smoke that comes out of there, it's sad to say that the parties on the ground are not listening."
UNRWA spokesman Johan Eriksson told the British Broadcasting Corp. via phone from Jerusalem that he had just spoken to the agencys boss in Gaza City, who confirmed to him that at least three shells containing white phosphorus hit their sprawling compound. Fire is raging inside our compound. It is inside a mechanical workshop, Eriksson told the BBC, adding that shipping pallets loaded with humanitarian aid were also on fire inside the compound. Firefighters cannot do anything. White phosphorus has landed and these fires cannot be put out, said Eriksson. Three people inside the compound are injured so far.
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The UN's aid compound in Gaza is in flames after apparently being hit by Israeli white phosporous shells. The UN's Chris Gunness told Sky News they had pleaded with the Israelis to stop shooting.
ITN (UK) (Independent Television News) Thusday 15 Janvier 2009 The Palestinian death toll has risen to at least 1,024, according to the Hamas-run Health Ministry in Gaza --- ITN (UK) Thu Jan 15 2009 The UN headquarters in Gaza has reportedly been set ablaze after being hit by Israeli shells. Witnesses and UN officials said the United Nations Relief and Work Agency building was being used as a shelter for civilians fleeing the bombardment of the Palestinian enclave when it was struck. UN spokesman Chris Gunness said: "Our compound in Gaza has now received three hits, reportedly of white phosphorus. "Buildings in the compound are on fire, there are loaded fuel tankers nearby. Three people have been injured. "It is not clear at this stage if they are UNWRA staff or some of the 700 or so civilians who have taken refuge in our compound." The use of white phosphorous, which causes horrific burns on contact with skin, was banned as a weapon of war in civilian areas under the 1980 Geneva protocol. An explosion in a Gaza City tower block housing the offices of the Reuters news agency and other media organisations was also blamed on an Israeli shell. Witnesses said the southern side of the 13th floor of the Al-Shurouq Tower in the city centre had been struck by an Israeli missile or shell and a journalist for the Abu Dhabi television channel. UN Secretary-General Ban Ki Moon said the number of deaths in the Gaza Strip after 20 days of fighting had become "unbearable". The Palestinian death toll has risen to at least 1,024, according to the Hamas-run Health Ministry in Gaza. A Palestinian rights group said 670 were civilians. Thirteen Israelis - ten soldiers and three civilians - have been killed. An Israeli envoy is meeting Egyptian mediators in Cairo as efforts to arrange a ceasefire with Islamist militants Hamas intensify. Spain's Foreign Minister Miguel Angel Moratinos, a former EU Middle East envoy, said: "My perception is we are very close to reaching a ceasefire. They are very close but still there is some work to be done."
The main UN compound in Gaza was in flames today after being struck by Israeli artillery fire, and a spokesman said that the building had been hit by shells containing the incendiary agent white phosphorus. The attack on the headquarters of the UN Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) came as Ban Ki Moon, the UN Secretary-General, arrived in Israel on a peace mission and plunged Israel's relations with the world body to a new low. Mr Ban told reporters in Tel Aviv that he had expressed "strong protest and outrage" to the Israeli Government over the shelling of the compound and was demanding an investigation. He said that Ehud Barak, the Israeli Defence Minister, had told him it was "a grave mistake". UNWRA, which looks after some four million Palestinian refugees around the region, suspended its operations in Gaza after the attack, in which it said three of its employees had been injured. Chris Gunness, an UNRWA spokesman, said that the building had been used to shelter hundreds of people fleeing Israels 20-day offensive in Gaza. He said that pallets with supplies desperately needed by Palestinians in Gaza were on fire. "What more stark symbolism do you need?" he said. "You cant put out white phosphorus with traditional methods such as fire extinguishers. You need sand, we dont have sand." The Israeli military has denied using white phosphorus shells in the Gaza offensive, although an investigation by The Times has revealed that dozens of Palestinians in Gaza have sustained serious injuries from the substance, which burns at extremely high temperatures. The Geneva Convention of 1980 proscribes the use of white phosphorus as a weapon of war in civilian areas, although it can be used to create a smokescreen. The Israel Defence Forces (IDF) said today that all weapons used in Gaza were "within the scope of international law". The attack on the UN compound came as Israeli forces pushed deeper into Gaza City and unleashed their heaviest shelling on its crowded neighbourhoods in three weeks of war. At least 15 Palestinians were killed in the Israeli attacks, medical officials said, pushing the death toll up towards 1,100 - a level that Mr Ban described as "unbearable". It was not clear whether the escalation signalled a new phase in the conflict. Israel has held back from all-out urban warfare in the narrow alleyways of Gaza's cities, where Hamas militants are more familiar with the lay of the land. Black smoke billowed over Gaza City, terrifying civilians who said they had "nowhere left to hide" from the relentless shelling. "I am telling you that Gaza is on fire, everything is under attack. We cannot begin to answer all the calls for help, it is desperate. We cannot reach the people, everyone is trapped and we do not know how to help them," said Doctor Moussa El Haddad at Shifa Hospital. Maha El-Sheiky, 36, said she fled her home in the western suburbs of Gaza City two days ago, moving her family into a school in the centre of the city. "We thought it would be safer here. But now there is shelling everywhere. It is schools and mosques and hospitals. We dont know what will be next," she said. "We are hiding, it is in Gods hands." There were reports that the al-Quds hospital in the Tal El Hawa district, Gaza's second-largest, had been shelled, while more than 500 patients were being treated inside. An explosion also blasted a tower block that houses the offices of Reuters and several other media organisations, injuring a journalist working for the Abu Dhabi television channel. Reuters journalists working at the time said it appeared the southern side of the 13th floor of the Al-Shurouq Tower in the city centre had been struck by an Israeli missile or shell. Reuters evacuated its bureau. Several organisations, including the International Committee of the Red Cross and Human Rights Watch, said that they were "certain" that Israel was using white phosphorus shells in Gaza. Human rights workers said that the use of phosphorus in the densely populated Gaza City could constitute a war crime. Israel launched the offensive on December 27 in an effort to stop militant rocket fire from Gaza that has terrorised hundreds of thousands of Israelis. It says it will press ahead until it receives guarantees of a complete halt to rocket fire and an end to weapons smuggling into Gaza from neighbouring Egypt.
This video was aired by CNN on Jan. 12, 2009. http://rawstory.com/news/2008/CNN_reports_on_Israels_use_of_0113.html JERUSALEM (AFP) — The Israeli army on Monday insisted all weapons being used in its Gaza war were within the bounds of international law amid accusations it was using white phosphorus and other deadly munitions. Medics in Gaza say they have treated more than 50 people suffering burns caused by controversial white phosphorus shells, a claim backed up by a report of the New York-based Human Rights Watch. And two Norwegian doctors, recently returned from working in the Gaza Strip, accused Israel of using the territory as a testing ground for a new "extremely nasty" type of explosive. An army spokesman refused to confirm or deny claims it was using white phosphorus, saying: "All weapons used by the IDF (Israel Defence Forces) are in accordance with international law. "We are only using what is being used by other Western armies -- we are not using anything out of the ordinary," he said. The controversy surrounding the nature of weapons being used by the Israeli army stepped up a notch on Monday when the two medics said they had seen clear signs that DIME explosives, a new experimental kind of weapon, were being used in Gaza. According to Mads Gilbert, the two had seen evidence of a number of "very brutal amputations... without shrapnel injuries" -- injuries which were likely to have been caused by such a weapon. An army spokeswoman said she was "not aware of this type of weapon" and reiterated claims that all weapons used by the military were legal. Mark Regev, spokesman for Prime Minister Ehud Olmert, said Israel was only using legal weapons of the type used by other Western armies. "Israel military forces only use munitions that are acceptable under international law and international convention," he said. "The type of munitions used by Israel are similar, if not to munitions used by other Western democracies, including NATO members." His comments came as Yusef Abu Rish, a doctor at Gaza City's Nasser hospital, said he had treated at least 55 people suffering burns caused by white phosphorus shells. Under international law, white phosphorus is banned for use against civilians, but is permitted if used for creating a smokescreen. Earlier, Human Rights Watch had slammed Israel's use of white phosphorus which it said had been used in areas of Gaza City and the northern district of Jabaliya. "Israel appears to be using white phosphorus as an 'obscurant' (a chemical used to hide military operations), a permissible use in principle under international humanitarian law," HRW said in a statement. "However, white phosphorus has a significant, incidental, incendiary effect that can severely burn people... The potential for harm to civilians is magnified by Gaza's high population density, among the highest in the world," it said. The group said its researchers in Israel had observed multiple air-bursts of artillery-fired white phosphorus which would spread the chemical over an area between 125 and 250 metres (yards) in diameter. "Human Rights Watch believes that the use of white phosphorus in densely populated areas of Gaza violates the requirement under international humanitarian law to take all feasible precautions to avoid civilian injury and loss of life," it said. During Israel's 2006 war against Lebanon's Hezbollah militia, the army was accused of using cluster bombs -- the use of which is banned in civilian areas -- but Israel said they were only being used within the confines of international law. White phosphorus is a toxic chemical agent which can cause severe burns. Dispersed in artillery shells, bombs, and rockets, it burns on contact with oxygen and creates a smokescreen in order to hide the movement of troops. CNN has more details here. http://www.cnn.com/2009/WORLD/meast/01/12/white.phosphorus/index.html
Dubai TV 090113 Al-Jazeera 090112 [LinkTV/Mosaic] - http://snipurl.com/9xyta - Human Rights Watch said Sunday that Israel's military has fired artillery shells with the incendiary agent white phosphorus into Gaza and a doctor there said the chemical was suspected in the case of 10 burn victims who had skin peeling off their faces and bodies. The substance can cause serious burns if it touches the skin and can spark fires on the ground, the rights group said in a written statement calling on Israel not to use it in crowded areas of Gaza. Israel used white phosphorus in its 34-day war with Hezbollah in Lebanon in 2006. The US military in Iraq used the incendiary during a November 2004 operation against insurgents in Fallujah.
Gaza Martyrs progress of their children and the Israeli aggression is continuing The area around: with the entry of Israeli aggression against the Gaza Strip today XVI, on Sunday killed nine people and wounded dozens, including the burning of phosphorous incendiary bombs in a series of raids in the Gaza Strip. Said Dr. Muawiya Hassanein, director general of ambulances and emergency number of martyrs in the 16 day of the aggression on the Gaza Strip came to more than 878 martyrs and more than 3620 wounded, including more than 411 wounded in critical condition. 3 people have been killed and 2 wounded in raids on the town of Beit Lahiya targeted the homes of my family is well known and injustice. He also cited four of the family of Bashir in the north-west of the dignity of Gaza City, while in their house after a rocket hit the Israeli occupation after the mechanics of progress in the region, and the fire ignited in a number of houses citizens after they fled from it. The sources said the area, witnesses and that the citizen Ala Bashir, "Abu Suhayb" He died with his son and his wife and her mother, Umm Mohammed, an increase, following the targeting of their house in the region and the targeting of a number of nearby houses, including the home of Dr.. Abbas and Haniyeh's house is rather Family and others. Eyewitnesses said that Israeli occupation forces began to withdraw from the Karama neighborhood of the northern Gaza Strip after the fact of the massacre and ignited the fire to homes. The occupation and the bombing of the home of Ahmed Jabari Balksam leading Al-east of Gaza homes in flames and the fires of the citizens there. In Gaza City, carried out intensive and sporadic clashes between the forces of occupation and the resistance where clashes were heard in the neighborhood of Sheikh Ajlin south-west of Gaza City, after the occupation of the mechanisms of Makhlap Nitzarim south of Gaza City to the city. It also heard from time to time, voices of clashes and helicopters firing at houses and citizens east of the Zeitoun neighborhood to the east of Gaza City, Palestinian medical sources said the death of citizens in the Israeli shelling on the town of Khuza'a, east of Khan Younis early Sunday. Meanwhile, witnesses said Israeli tanks had entered the area at dawn on Sunday, Sheikh Ajlin south-west of Gaza City. Occupation deny the use of prohibited weapons He denied the Israeli army denied firing on the village of Khuzaa and the use of banned weapons against civilians. He said army spokesman Captain Guy Sbieglmn "We deny any wage in this sector." "I do not use white phosphorus shells filled with all that we use in conformity with the international conventions." White phosphorus and toxic substance, and the injury could be a judge, because it caused burns on the body and harm the heart, kidneys and liver. In any international treaty banning the use of this type of ammunition. But the third protocol to the 1980 Convention on Conventional Weapons prohibits the use against civilian and military forces stationed among civilians. The expansion process Meanwhile, the Yedioth Ahronoth newspaper said the leader of the southern region (Gaza Strip) in the Israeli army, Major Yoav Glant, who leads the Israeli operation in the Gaza Strip recommended to Prime Minister Ehud Olmert to expand the process and the implementation of phase III. The paper quoted Major Glant saying: "The suspension of the campaign in its current stage would be a historic mistake," saying that it could undermine the rule of Hamas in Gaza with a new occupation entirely. He also commander of the southern region that Israel can not rely on anyone but themselves to prevent the smuggling of weapons from Egypt into the Gaza Strip. In turn, the transfer of the Voice of Israel in Hebrew, a senior military officer as saying that he must move forward in the military operation until the end of this month at least saying that the political and military leaderships of Hamas, were two goals of the army of occupation.
الإرهاب الصهيوني
الإرهاب الصهيوني على غزة
Doctors in Gaza City have said people have been admitted suffering burns consistent with the use of the controversial chemical white phosphorus. Human Rights Watch said Sunday that Israel's military has fired artillery shells with the incendiary agent white phosphorus into Gaza and a doctor there said the chemical was suspected in the case of 10 burn victims who had skin peeling off their faces and bodies. Researchers in Israel from the rights group witnessed hours of artillery bombardments that sent trails of burning smoke indicating white phosphorus over the Jebaliya refugee camp in northern Gaza. But they could not confirm injuries on the ground because they have been barred from entering the territory. The chief doctor at Nasser Hospital in southern Gaza said he treated several victims there with serious burns that might have been caused by phosphorus. He said, however, that he did not have the resources or expertise to say with certainty what caused the injuries. The substance can cause serious burns if it touches the skin and can spark fires on the ground, the rights group said in a written statement calling on Israel not to use it in crowded areas of Gaza. Military spokeswoman Maj. Avital Leibovich refused to comment directly on whether Israel was using phosphorus, but said the army was "using its munitions in accordance with international law." Israel used white phosphorus in its 34-day war with Hezbollah in Lebanon in 2006. The U.S. military in Iraq used the incendiary during a November 2004 operation against insurgents in the city of Fallujah. An AP photographer and a TV crew based in Gaza visited Nasser Hospital in Khan Younis on Sunday and recorded images of several burn patients. One of them, Haitham Tahseen, recalled sitting outside his home with his family in the morning when something exploded above them. "Suddenly, I saw bombs coming with white smoke," said the man, whose burned face was covered with medical cream. "It looked very red and it had white smoke. That's the first time I've seen such a thing." His cousin, in another hospital bed, was more severely burned, with patches of skin peeling off his face and body, and had to be wrapped with thick white bandages. The hospital's chief doctor, Youssef Abu Rish, said the burns were not from contact with fire, but he couldn't say what sort of substance caused them. He said information he collected on the Internet indicated it could have been white phosphorus. White phosphorus is not considered a chemical weapon, and militaries are permitted under laws of warfare to use it in artillery shells, bombs and rockets to create smoke screens to hide troop movements as well as bright bursts in the air to illuminate battlefields at night. Israel is not party to a convention regulating its use. Under customary laws of war, however, Israel would be expected to take all feasible precautions to minimize the impact of white phosphorus on civilians, Human Rights Watch said. "What we're saying is the use of white phosphorus in densely populated areas like a refugee camp is showing that the Israelis are not taking all feasible precautions," said Marc Garlasco, a senior military analyst for the rights group. "It's just an unnecessary risk to the civilian population, not only in the potential for wounds but also for burning homes and infrastructure." Garlasco was among researchers on a ridge about a mile from the Gaza border who observed the shelling from a 155mm artillery unit on Friday and Saturday. Some of the burning trails of smoke caused fires on the ground that appeared to go out after a few minutes, said Garlasco, who formerly worked at the Pentagon where he was in charge of recommending high-value targets for air strikes during the 2003 invasion of Iraq. Each 155mm shell contains 116 of what Garlasco described as wafers doused in phosphorus that can be spread over an area as large as a sports field, depending on the height at which it detonates. The phosphorus ignites when it comes in contact with oxygen. Human Rights Watch has not been able to confirm whether there have been any civilian casualties from phosphorus. The group has a consultant working for it inside Gaza but he has been unable to move around due to the danger. Foreign journalists have also been barred from entering Gaza. Garlasco said photos published Thursday in British newspaper The Times showed Israeli units handling American-manufactured white phosphorus shells with fuses on them.
GAZA, Jan. 11 (UPI) -- Israeli forces drove into the capital of Gaza Sunday following a missile barrage that burned an estimated 20 homes in southern Gaza, officials said. Israeli troops and tanks carried out the assault as smoke resulting from artillery attacks and airstrikes filled the air, the Los Angeles Times reported. Troops withdrew after hours of heavy fighting, the Times said. In the village where homes were burned, doctors treating civilians for burns and gas inhalation said they suspected Israeli forces had fired white phosphorus shells, which are used for nighttime illumination in battle or for providing smoke screen cover, the Times said. Hamas fighters fired on Israeli forces with mortars, automatic rifles and grenades in what the newspaper said was the heaviest fighting in the 16 days since Israel attacked Gaza. Israel said the offensive is intended to put a stop to persistent rocket attacks from Gaza. Palestinian militants in Gaza hit Israel with at least 17 more rockets Sunday as Israeli warplanes struck Hamas targets, CNN reported. The violence came as Israeli Deputy Defense Minister Matan Vilnai told Israel Radio his country's military offensive in Gaza may be nearing completion. After noting that a U.N. Security Council resolution demanding a cease-fire "doesn't leave us much leeway," Vilnai reportedly added, "It would seem then, I'm guessing, that we are close to the end of the ground operation and the end of the operation altogether." Palestinian medical sources said four Gaza residents, including a pregnant woman, were killed Sunday morning, bringing the estimated number of those killed to at least 828 since the start of the Israeli offensive. Other sources said the fresh fighting came after a girl was killed and 49 others were severely burned by fires caused by Israeli shelling in southern Gaza Saturday, where several buildings, including a U.N. school, ignited near Khan Younes. Palestinian sources also told CNN a family of nine was killed in the village of Jebalya in northern Gaza when a shell hit their home. But an Israeli army spokesman said the military was "not operating in the area of this house, and no fire was directed in that direction." The sign taped to the front of 10-month-old Ezra Wiesenberg read: "The IDF don't hide behind me! Stop Hamas abuse of children shields." Strapped to his mother Ann's chest, Ezra and his family had travelled with thousands of other Jews to London's to Trafalgar Square in London yesterday for a pro-Israeli rally calling for peace in the Middle East but also supporting the Israeli government's actions in Gaza. Across the street, behind a cordon, the Rabbi Avraham Greenberg took his Israeli passport from its plastic wallet and slowly set it on fire with a gas lighter until its ashes floated around him. He explained to the small crowd on the pavement that he had been born in the state of Israel but he was ashamed to hold a passport from that country. He stood with more than a dozen Orthodox rabbis who joined in chants of "Judaism here to stay, Zionism no way". But many more thousands of Jews attended in support of the rally rather than opposing it, waving Israeli flags and placards saying End Hamas Terror and wearing Stars of David on their faces. Henry Grunwald, president of the Board of Deputies of British Jews, told the crowd, which was estimated at 15,000 by the organisers: "We are the people who want peace and who want life for Israel." The chief rabbi, Sir Jonathan Sacks, gave a message to Hamas: "Stop wanting Israel to die, start wanting your children to live. Why, Hamas, do you hold in contempt, not only Israeli lives but Palestinian lives?" To applause, Ron Prosor, the Israeli ambassador to the UK, said: "The age of terrorism must be brought to a close so that together we can build an age of peace. Our soldiers are doing their duty with honour, dignity and sacrifice."
Israel using phosphorus bombs, says rights group Sunday 11 January 2009 The US-based advocacy group Human Rights Watch called on Israel to stop using incendiary white-phosphorus shells in its assault on Gaza. Palestinian medics told FRANCE 24 of burns consistent with the use of such weapons.
ABC News (Australia) 11 January 2009 Israeli warplanes have bombed about 60 targets throughout the Gaza Stip, while Palestinian militants fired three rockets into the Jewish state, the army said. Among the targets hit were smuggling tunnels in the south of Gaza as well as "a mosque used to stockpile arms and as a training base," an Israeli army spokeswoman said. Ground troops exchanged fire with Palestinian fighters throughout the night at several locations, she said, without giving specifics. Palestinian medics said at least four people were killed and dozens wounded in the overnight fighting. Gaza militants, meanwhile, fired off three rockets into the Jewish state, with the projectiles falling without causing casualties, two of them near the desert town of Beersheva some 40 kilometres from the Gaza border. With the body count spiralling, Hamas remained defiant in the face of Egyptian-led efforts to broker a ceasefire, vowing it would not negotiate "under fire." And medics said four Palestinians were killed and dozens wounded by heavy Israeli tank fire and air strikes. Some doctors alleged burn injuries were caused by banned white phosphorous shells that Israel denied using. Witnesses said that around dawn tanks had entered the Al Sheikh Ajlin neighbourhood of Gaza City, shelling it and another area closer to the city centre, Tall al-Hawa. They said there had also been intense shelling of the city's Zeitun neighbourhood, as well as of Sudaniyah, near the Mediterranean Sea in north-western Gaza. Hamas and Islamic Jihad said several people had been hurt during clashes between Palestinian gunmen and Israeli tanks on the edge of Al Sheikh Ajlin. They said militants were placing roadside bombs to impede the advance of the tanks as they moved into the neighbourhood. An Israeli military spokeswoman confirmed the army had forces in the area, saying they were part of the ongoing operation, but would not say whether their attacks were intensifying, or were the beginning of a new push. Israeli planes on Saturday dropped leaflets over Gaza warning that the Jewish state was about to escalate the campaign it launched more than two weeks ago aimed at halting rocket fire into Israel. Dr Yusef Abu Rish at Gaza City's Nasser hospital said that at least 55 people were injured early on Sunday by white phosphorous shells, banned under international law for use against civilians, but permitted for creating smokescreens. "These people were burned over their bodies in a way that can only be caused by white phosphorous," he said. A military spokeswoman denied the claims. "There is no use of white phosphorous. Everything we use is according to international law," she said. A closed-door briefing was told on Saturday that Israeli troops had killed more than 550 Palestinian fighters since the operation began, a senior military official said. Army spokesman Jacob Dallal declined to confirm the number but said "several hundred" fighters, most of them from Hamas, had been killed since Israel launched its offensive on December 27. "There is no question that the military ability of Hamas has been diminished," he said. 'Enemy has failed' But Hamas supremo Khaled Meshaal, speaking from exile in Syria, said Israel was making no headway. "I can say with full confidence that on the military level the enemy has totally failed; it has not achieved anything," Meshaal said in pre-recorded remarks broadcast on Arabic satellite television. "Has it stopped the rockets?" he asked of Israel's declared aim in launching the offensive. Meshaal added that Hamas would not accept any truce without the withdrawal of all Israeli forces and the lifting of the blockade slapped on the territory when the Islamists seized power in 18 months ago. "With an open mind we will work with any initiative or any resolution but only based on these demands. We will not accept negotiations on a truce under fire," he said. Since the Israeli offensive began on December 27, at least 854 people have been killed, including 270 children, 93 women, and 12 paramedics, according to Palestinian medics. Another 3,490 people have been wounded, overwhelming Gaza's beleaguered medical facilities. - AFP http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2009/01/11/2463243.htm
Hamas fighter fires a rocket into Israel positions أعلنت المقاومة الفلسطينية أنها تمكنت من قتل ثمانية جنود إسرائيليين على الأقل في كمين في منطقة بيت لاهيا شمال قطاع غزة إضافة إلى قنص عدة جنود آخرين, كما أعلنت أنها قصفت قاعدة عسكرية رئيسية في إسرائيل تصل إليها لأول مرة, فيما ارتفع عدد الشهداء إلى 782 فلسطينيا ونحو 3300 جريحا. وقال مصدر في كتائب عز الدين القسام, الجناح العسكري لحركة حماس, لـسيريانيوز إن الكتائب "تمكنت بعد ظهر الجمعة من اقتحام بيت يحتله جنود إسرائيليون في حي "السلاطين" في بيت لاهيا شمال غرب قطاع غزة، حيث أجهز المجاهدون على القوة بشكل كامل والتي لا تقل عن ثمانية جنود صهاينة". وأضاف المصدر أن كتائب القسام قنصت الجمعة أيضا جندياً إسرائيليا على جبل الريس شرق جباليا، وأربعة جنود آخرين في مناطق مختلفة من قطاع غزة, كما قصفت موقع أبو مطيبق العسكري شرق المغازي بقذائف هاون ثقيلة وتجمعاً للآليات شرق رفح. WATCH Qassam Brigades claim killed 8 IDF in an Ambush http://uk.youtube.com/my_videos_edit2?ns=1&video_id=QyA7IItZMH4 Human Rights Watch has called on Israel to stop using white phosphorus which it says has been used in military operations in the densely populated Gaza Strip. The US-based group said that its researchers observed the use of the chemical, which can burn away human flesh to the bone, over Gaza City and Jabalya on Friday and Saturday. "We went by Israeli artillery units that had white phosphorus rounds with the fuses in them," Marc Garlasco, a senior military analyst at Human Rights Watch, told Al Jazeera. "Clearly it is [white phosphorus], we can tell by the explosions and the tendrils that go down [and] the fires that were burning," he said. "Today there were massive attacks in Jabalya when we were there. We saw that there were numerous fires once the white phosphorus had gone in." International law permits the use of white phopshorus as an "obscurant" to cover troop movements and prevent enemies from using certain guided weapons, but its use is controversial as it can injure people through painful chemical burns. "Even if they are using it as an obscurant, they are using it in a very densely populated area," Garlasco said. "The problem is it covers such a wide area that when the white phosphorus wafers come down, over 100 in each artillery shell, they burn everything they touch and they don't stop burning until they are done. "You are talking about skin damage, potentially homes going on fire, damage to infrastructure." Human Rights Watch said that it believed the use of the chemical in Gaza violated the requirement under international humanitarian law to take all feasible precautions to avoid civilian injury and loss of life. The Israeli military has previously denied using white phosphorus during the 15-day offensive in the Gaza Strip, but has said that any munitions that it does use comply with international law. Israel used white phophorus during its 34-day war against Lebanon's Hezbollah movement in 2006, while the United States used it during the controversial siege of the Iraqi city of Fallujah in 2004.
A fighter from hamas fires a B7 rocket on the incoming IDF soldiers. أعلنت المقاومة الفلسطينية أنها تمكنت من قتل ثمانية جنود إسرائيليين على الأقل في كمين في منطقة بيت لاهيا شمال قطاع غزة إضافة إلى قنص عدة جنود آخرين, كما أعلنت أنها قصفت قاعدة عسكرية رئيسية في إسرائيل تصل إليها لأول مرة, فيما ارتفع عدد الشهداء إلى 782 فلسطينيا ونحو 3300 جريحا. وقال مصدر في كتائب عز الدين القسام, الجناح العسكري لحركة حماس, لـسيريانيوز إن الكتائب "تمكنت بعد ظهر الجمعة من اقتحام بيت يحتله جنود إسرائيليون في حي "السلاطين" في بيت لاهيا شمال غرب قطاع غزة، حيث أجهز المجاهدون على القوة بشكل كامل والتي لا تقل عن ثمانية جنود صهاينة". وأضاف المصدر أن كتائب القسام قنصت الجمعة أيضا جندياً إسرائيليا على جبل الريس شرق جباليا، وأربعة جنود آخرين في مناطق مختلفة من قطاع غزة, كما قصفت موقع أبو مطيبق العسكري شرق المغازي بقذائف هاون ثقيلة وتجمعاً للآليات شرق رفح. WATCH Qassam Brigades claim killed 8 IDF in an Ambush http://uk.youtube.com/my_videos_edit2?ns=1&video_id=QyA7IItZMH4 Human Rights Watch has called on Israel to stop using white phosphorus which it says has been used in military operations in the densely populated Gaza Strip. The US-based group said that its researchers observed the use of the chemical, which can burn away human flesh to the bone, over Gaza City and Jabalya on Friday and Saturday. "We went by Israeli artillery units that had white phosphorus rounds with the fuses in them," Marc Garlasco, a senior military analyst at Human Rights Watch, told Al Jazeera. "Clearly it is [white phosphorus], we can tell by the explosions and the tendrils that go down [and] the fires that were burning," he said. "Today there were massive attacks in Jabalya when we were there. We saw that there were numerous fires once the white phosphorus had gone in." International law permits the use of white phopshorus as an "obscurant" to cover troop movements and prevent enemies from using certain guided weapons, but its use is controversial as it can injure people through painful chemical burns. "Even if they are using it as an obscurant, they are using it in a very densely populated area," Garlasco said. "The problem is it covers such a wide area that when the white phosphorus wafers come down, over 100 in each artillery shell, they burn everything they touch and they don't stop burning until they are done. "You are talking about skin damage, potentially homes going on fire, damage to infrastructure." Human Rights Watch said that it believed the use of the chemical in Gaza violated the requirement under international humanitarian law to take all feasible precautions to avoid civilian injury and loss of life. The Israeli military has previously denied using white phosphorus during the 15-day offensive in the Gaza Strip, but has said that any munitions that it does use comply with international law. Israel used white phophorus during its 34-day war against Lebanon's Hezbollah movement in 2006, while the United States used it during the controversial siege of the Iraqi city of Fallujah in 2004.
The use of white phosphorus as a weapon is banned by the third convention on conventional weapons. Eyewitness descriptions of civilians suffering phosphorus burns are lending weight to suggestions that Israel is using the shells. Who is the TERRORIST?
Get off your ass and DO SOMETHING. http://www.house.gov http://www.senate.gov THE DAISY CHAIN OF VIDEOS FOR YOUR EMAILS TO YOUR ELECTED OFFICIALS. NOTE, THEY ARE ALL MEDIA OUTLETS. Rick Sanchez Showing Israel Broke Cease Fire http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3wPOfi_iFnI Israel Using White Phosphorous Shells on Gaza http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nIzCaZprlbg Israel Attacks UN Humanitarian Trucks http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EhNnrEKCytg Israeli Soldiers Attack TV Correspondant http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5kjSpXQhACs Israel Attacks PressTV in Gaza http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qMUpkO0cueY Now get off your asses and do something. Failure to do so results in you wearing the blood of their victims on your own hands. Don't be a Pontius Pilate.
09.01.2009 Israeli forces move near 110 Palestinians into a house and shell it repeatedly 24 hours later, killing about 30 people, a UN reports says. "According to several testimonies, on 4 January Israeli foot soldiers evacuated approximately 110 Palestinians into a single-residence house in Zeitun (half of whom were children) warning them to stay indoors," AFP quoted the United Nations' report as say More..ing on Friday. "Twenty-four hours later, Israeli forces shelled the home repeatedly, killing approximately 30," the report added. The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) called the bombardment as "one of the gravest incidents after the beginning of Israeli onslaught on Gaza since December 27. "Those who survived and were able walked two kilometers to Salah Ed Din road before being transported to hospital in civilian vehicles. Three children, the youngest of whom was five months old, died upon arrival at the hospital," OCHA said. However, Israeli military spokeswoman Avital Leibovich said: "From initial checking, we don't have knowledge of this incident. We started an inquiry but we still don't know about it." Israel has been pounding the coastal enclave on the fourteenth day of war on Gaza despite the UN Security Council's binding resolution which has called for an immediate and durable ceasefire and the full withdrawal of Israeli forces from the coastal enclave. Since Israel launched "Operation Cast Lead", 783 people have been killed and nearly 3,200 others have been wounded, Palestinian emergency services report.
08.01.2009 Tags; Dense Inert Metal Explosive DIME experimental type warfare damage explosion particle collateral blast radius material such tungsten chemical homogeneous mixture HMX RDX cluster bombs white phosphorus
Criminal Israel rains fire on Gaza with phosphorus shells إسرائيل تحرق غزة بالفوسفور الأبيض http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/middle_east/article5447590.ece Israel is believed to be using controversial white phosphorus shells to screen its assault on the heavily populated Gaza Strip yesterday. The weapon, used by British and US forces in Iraq, can cause horrific burns but is not illegal if used as a smokescreen. As the Israeli army stormed to the edges of Gaza City and the Palestinian death toll topped 500, the tell-tale shells could be seen spreading tentacles of thick white smoke to cover the troops advance. These explosions are fantastic looking, and produce a great deal of smoke that blinds the enemy so that our forces can move in, said one Israeli security expert. Burning blobs of phosphorus would cause severe injuries to anyone caught beneath them and force would-be snipers or operators of remote-controlled booby traps to take cover. Israel admitted using white phosphorus during its 2006 war with Lebanon. The use of the weapon in the Gaza Strip, one of the worlds mostly densely population areas, is likely to ignite yet more controversy over Israels offensive, in which more than 2,300 Palestinians have been wounded. The Geneva Treaty of 1980 stipulates that white phosphorus should not be used as a weapon of war in civilian areas, but there is no blanket ban under international law on its use as a smokescreen or for illumination. However, Charles Heyman, a military expert and former major in the British Army, said: If white phosphorus was deliberately fired at a crowd of people someone would end up in The Hague. White phosphorus is also a terror weapon. The descending blobs of phosphorus will burn when in contact with skin. The Israeli military last night denied using phosphorus, but refused to say what had been deployed. Israel uses munitions that are allowed for under international law, said Captain Ishai David, spokesman for the Israel Defence Forces. We are pressing ahead with the second stage of operations, entering troops in the Gaza Strip to seize areas from which rockets are being launched into Israel. The civilian toll in the first 24 hours of the ground offensive — launched after a week of bombardment from air, land and sea— was at least 64 dead. Among those killed were five members of a family who died when an Israeli tank shell hit their car and a paramedic who died when a tank blasted his ambulance. Doctors at Gaza Citys main hospital said many women and children were among the dead and wounded. The Israeli army also suffered its first fatality of the offensive when one of its soldiers was killed by mortar fire. More than 30 soldiers were wounded by mortars, mines and sniper fire. Israel has brushed aside calls for a ceasefire to allow humanitarian aid into the besieged territory, where medical supplies are running short. With increasingly angry anti-Israeli protests spreading around the world, Gordon Brown described the violence in Gaza as a dangerous moment. White phosphorus: the smoke-screen chemical that can burn to the bone — White phosphorus bursts into a deep-yellow flame when it is exposed to oxygen, producing a thick white smoke — It is used as a smokescreen or for incendiary devices, but can also be deployed as an anti-personnel flame compound capable of causing potentially fatal burns — Phosphorus burns are almost always second or third-degree because the particles do not stop burning on contact with skin until they have entirely disappeared — it is not unknown for them to reach the bone — Geneva conventions ban the use of phosphorus as an offensive weapon against civilians, but its use as a smokescreen is not prohibited by international law — Israel previously used white phosphorus during its war with Lebanon in 2006 — It has been used frequently by British and US forces in recent wars, notably during the invasion of Iraq in 2003. Its use was criticised widely — White phosphorus has the slang name Willy Pete, which dates from the First World War. It was commonly used in the Vietnam era
Thoughts on the Israel/Palestine Conflict. Special thanks to PierreElliotTrudeau for sending me the raw file for the Rick Sanchez clip http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CyayB0OX1n8 Also, check out 911Tourettes and her clip from MSNBC (which I cannot find on the United States site) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nIzCaZprlbg Contact your legislators and let them know you do not approve of the behavior of Israel's government, and that you support a stop in funding of Israel. http://www.house.gov http://www.senate.gov
White phosphorus 'burns to the bone' It causes skin to melt away from the bone and can break down a victim's jawbone, but white phosphorus - known in Vietnam as Willie Pete - is still used by sections of the world's military. Similar to Napalm, the chemical substance is used in shells and grenades, igniting spontaneously at around 30C to produce an intense heat and thick pillars of smoke. "These weapons are particularly nasty because white phosphorus continues to burn until it disappears. If service members are hit by pieces of white phosphorus, it could burn right down to the bone." While the use of the material is not specifically banned, it is covered by Protocol III of the 1980 Convention on Conventional Weapons, which prohibits use of the substance as an incendiary weapon against civilian populations and in air attacks against military forces in civilian areas. Though the UK and 80 other countries are signatories to protocol III, the United States is not.
01-07-2008 Israel accused of using phosphorus shells WATCH VIDEO Source: CCTV.com | 01-07-2009 09:29 Special Report: Israel airstrikes in Gaza Some military experts say video of the Israeli assault on Gaza may show the use of phosphorus shells over Gaza City. If true, use of the weapons in a densely populated area would contravene international laws. Burning phosphorus causes severe and possibly fatal burns when it comes into contact with human skin. Israel has flatly denied using the lethal weapon. An Israeli military spokeswoman insisted that all ammunition being used is in accordance with international law. A senior military analyst at Human Rights Watch says the Israeli Defence Forces have confirmed they are using white phosphorus in Gaza to hide troop movements a legal, non-lethal use of the substance. Israel has a recent history of using phosphorus during conflict including during the 2006 war in Lebanon.
What israel doing in Gaza? From The TimesOnline: "Israel rains fire on Gaza with phosphorus shells" January 2009
ISRAEL has been accused of firing fearsome - and possibly illegal - white phosphorus shells in Gaza as its forces cut the 40km-long coastal territory in two. White phosphorus, believed to have been used to cause a dense smokescreen as troops and tanks advanced, can cause horrific burns to anyone coming into contact with it. Its use as a military weapon is forbidden in civilian areas under the Geneva Treaty of 1980. Experts quoted in the British media said that if white phosphorus had been used in an area as heavily populated as Gaza, Israel might have committed a war crime. The Israeli military has denied using the controversial munitions, but acknowledged their use during its 2006 war against Hezbollah in Lebanon. British and United States forces also used it - drawing heavy criticism - during the 2003 invasion of Iraq. It is not illegal if used as a smokescreen. "Israel uses munitions that are allowed under international law," spokesman Ishai David was quoted as saying in the Daily Mail - but declined to elaborate on the type of shells used during the Gaza operation. In any case, by yesterday, the Israeli ground offensive - which came after eight days of air strikes since Dec 27 - had cut Gaza, controlled by the militant Hamas, in two. Israel had said ground operations were needed because rocket attacks by Hamas fighters on civilian areas in southern Israel had continued despite air strikes. Israeli Defence Minister Ehud Barak has insisted the offensive in Gaza would proceed, reported the BBC. Israel, which goes to the polls next month, launched 30 air strikes last night. Heavy clashes were reported east of Gaza City, the largest urban area. Moves to seek a ceasefire or a diplomatic resolution, led by France, have gathered pace as the death toll shot past 500. A Hamas delegation was expected in Egypt, which European Union foreign-policy chief Javier Solana had said could play a "fundamental" role in bringing about a ceasefire. However, Hamas was still talking tough: Top leader Mahmud Zahar yesterday vowed Hamas was heading to "victory".
Said Israeli Apache rocket attack but is confirmed white phosphorous artillery shell. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NtFEP-1FyI8
What was said to be a israeli apache rocket attack but is a white phosphorous artillery shell.
Excerpt
...with a chemical agent designed to create smokescreen for ground forces Israel is believed to be using controversial white phosphorus shells to screen its assault on the heavily populated Gaza Strip yesterday. The weapon, used by British and US forces in Iraq,...
Source Info
Global Research
http://www.globalresearch.ca/index.php?context=viewArticle&code=20090105&articleId=11624
White phosphorus (WP) White phosphorus can cause injuries and death in three ways: by burning deep into tissue, by being inhaled as a smoke, and by being ingested. Extensive exposure in any way is fatal. It is alleged that Israel used White Phosphorus shells on urban areas of Gaza during its artillery bombardment, contrary the United Nations Convention on Certain Conventional Weapons of 1980, that bans the use of incendiary weapons in densely inhabited civilian areas. http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=MKgph9PV3SA Military aid Israel has received more U.S. military assistance than any other country, both in terms of grant aid and military sales on a concessional basis. Since 1987, the U.S. has provided an average of $1.8 billion annually in the form of Foreign Military Sales (FMS), Foreign Military Financing (FMF) and funds to support research and development. In 2007, the United States increased its military aid to Israel by over 25%, to an average of $3 billion per year for the following ten year period (starting at $2.550 billion for 2008, growing by $150 million each year). Gaza ghetto It is a tried and tested recipe for dealing with a civilian population perceived as the enemy. Make them prisoners in their own houses and streets, behind walls and high wire fences. Have your army and police force guard the gates to prevent free movement of people. Blockade food and other essential supplies. When the people behind the walls rise up in defiance, crush them with all the military power at your disposal. It worked for Nazi Germany in the Warsaw ghetto during the second world war. It's working for the Israelis today in the Gaza Strip. How American News Media Works? Great video That shows what is REALLY going on there. http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=JZw7dBZFCVM
Israel rains fire on Gaza with phosphorus shells The Geneva Treaty of 1980 stipulates that white phosphorus should not be used as a weapon of war in civilian areas, but there is no blanket ban under international law on its use as a smokescreen or for illumination. However, Charles Heyman, a military expert and former major in the British Army, said: If white phosphorus was deliberately fired at a crowd of people someone would end up in The Hague. White phosphorus is also a terror weapon. The descending blobs of phosphorus will burn when in contact with skin.
The M110 155mm WP projectile is used for target marking, signaling, and screening purposes. The shells also have a secondary incendiary effect.
President-elect Barack Baruch Obama is playing the deaf, mute and blind on Israel's vicious slaughter of Palestinians in Gaza.He uses the excuse of 'one president at a time' but that does not keep the subservient slave of Israel from talking about the economy and making economic policy decisions. He must be waiting for Israel to kill as many Palestinians as possible before he takes office.Each and everyone who voted for Obama carries personal responsibility for what is happening to Palestinians.Israel called up reservists for the invasion.Will Rahm Emmanuel, one of Obama's Jewish appointees and a reservist in Israeli Offense Forces, respond to the call and join the slaughter of Palestinians by Israel? As for 'one president at a time' nonsense, Obama talked on the issue of Mumbai attacks more than a month ago.Was he the only president back then?What a hypocritical politician he is...Change you can believe in? ***LONDON, (PIC)- The British Times newspaper said that Israel rained Gaza with internationally- banned white phosphorus which may cause terrible burns to civilians. In its issue published on Monday, the Times pointed out that the American and British occupation forces in Iraq used this weapon against civilians, but it said it is not illegal if used as a "smokescreen". The newspaper added that the use of this weapon in Gaza, one of the worlds mostly densely populated areas, is likely to ignite yet more controversy over Israels offensive, in which more than 550 Palestinians were killed 2,300 others were wounded. The Geneva Convention stipulates that white phosphorus should not be used as a weapon of war in civilian areas. Palestinian eyewitnesses reported Monday evening that recent artillery shells used by the IOF troops in the bombardment of southeast of Gaza city and north of the Strip is a new kind of incendiary bombs never used in the Palestinian lands. They added that the IOF troops fired white phosphorous bombs on civilian areas which caused serious burns to some Gaza citizens. Al-Qassam Brigades, the armed wing of Hamas, declared that its fighters managed to shoot down an Israeli spy drone, adding that the plane was used to fire missiles and spy on targets in Gaza. This is the second time Al-Qassam Brigades announced its success in shooting down an Israeli plane, while European sources affirmed that an Israeli helicopter was forced to make an emergency landing after it was hit by Palestinian fire. The Brigades also said that it sniped four Israeli soldiers, targeted a tank and fired rockets on the Israeli Hatsor airbase and Nahal Oz military post.http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/White_phosphorus_(weapon)
Excerpt
...is believed to be using controversial white phosphorus shells to screen its assault on the heavily populated Gaza Strip yesterday. The weapon, used by British and US forces in Iraq, can cause horrific burns but is not illegal if used as a smokescreen. As the...
Source Info
Times Online
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/middle_east/article5447590.ece#cid=OTC-RSS&attr=2015164
Chemical Weapons being used on the town of Fallujah by the U.S military. An excerpt from a documentary broadcast on Italian Television (RAI) in 2005 after the American government attempted to blame Italy for aspects of the exposed Yellowcake Uranium lie that helped get the United States into its naziesque war on South West Asia. There are a few seconds of black in the middle of the clip The full version of the doco can be found by googling : Italian Documentary RAI Chemical weapons Fallujah
United States Army General Tommy Franks, according to his book Plan of Attack, says of Feith: "I have to deal with the stupidest fucking guy on the planet almost every day." Why Iraq was invaded? He says 'the president decided' that the threats were so great that Saddam would attack the US at a time and place of his choosing? As if the Gulf War didn't send the message, so instead of focusing on the 'terrorists' in Afghanistan and Pakistan where supposedly Osama Bin Laden is hiding (and never going to be caught to keep you in fear), the US first strikes, assassinates Iraq's leaders, commits genocide, for oil. But not for cheap prices, instead for power, the Iraq Petroleum Company — Exxon Mobil, Shell, Total and BP and Chevron, got no-bid contracts to service Iraq's largest oil fields in thanks for their consulting services, how nice. At least the Bush administration has stopped saying it was to spread democracy to the middle east. And why doesn't the US invade Pakistan, because they have nuclear weapons that the US helps them to upkeep and maintain. Forgetting North Korea, Syria, and anywhere else. He says after 9/11 they looked broadly at the international terrorist network from which the next attack might come and choose to attack Iraq, who never had terrorists before the US invaded. Might want to check out the YouTube - 'How to create an Angry American' http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OgfzqulvhlQ for a response to this tale. He fabricates another reason that the US attacked Iraq for anticipatory self defense that would imply that Iraq attacked or would attack the US or had the capability to do so. Based on that logic, any country in the world can be attacked because they may one day be a threat, regardless if they actually are or not. Even individuals who disagree may one day be a threat, so Feith logic would invade or kill them. Then he dismisses the propaganda eminent threat that the Bush administration used. And let's not forget the Curveball faulty intelligence that Colin Powell used to justify the war with his cartoon drawings of 'facts'. Guess if you throw enough crap reasons at the wall on why Iraq was invaded the Bush administration thinking is that something will eventually stick, though it still stinks. How Did Iraq Get Its WMD? - We Sold Them To Saddam http://www.rense.com/general29/wesold.htm But check out. Iraq's WMD: The Lie that Will Never Die http://www.dissidentvoice.org/Articles8/Nimmo_Iraq-WMD-Lies.htm Basically the WMD's the US did give Saddam was useless due to the shelf life of the material. Wow, what a threat, of useless WMD's and aged aircraft and tanks with no spare parts, or for that matter any major weapon manufacturing capability. Facts are the UN weapon inspectors determined there were no WMD's to be found in Iraq. The illegal invasion was engineered through propaganda, and any killings in Iraq were a war crime. From the war crime of torture in Iraq like in Abu Ghraib to the millions of men, women, and children brutally killed, to the food (or lack thereof) and water, poisoned through depleted uranium, its economy decimated, cluster bombs, white phosphorous, and the destruction of the Iraqi culture. Let's not forget the American soldier lives, over 4000 for these lies and the theft of Iraqi oil. And you thought this was to lower gas prices. It's to control the oil, charge as much as possible to tax the world for it, force the US economy off of oil, thereby preventing money from going overseas to the oil producers of the world like Saudi Arabia, Russia, and the rest. Though the carbon tax will penalize those who benefit from their oil.
Why Iraq was invaded? He says 'the president decided' that the threats were so great that Saddam would attack the US at a time and place of his choosing? As if the Gulf War didn't send the message, so instead of focusing on the 'terrorists' in Afghanistan and Pakistan where supposedly Osama Bin Laden is hiding (and never going to be caught to keep you in fear), the US first strikes, assassinates Iraq's leaders, commits genocide, for oil. But not for cheap prices, instead for power, the Iraq Petroleum Company — Exxon Mobil, Shell, Total and BP and Chevron, got no-bid contracts to service Iraq's largest oil fields in thanks for their consulting services, how nice. At least the Bush administration has stopped saying it was to spread democracy to the middle east. And why doesn't the US invade Pakistan, because they have nuclear weapons that the US helps them to upkeep and maintain. Forgetting North Korea, Syria, and anywhere else. He says after 9/11 they looked broadly at the international terrorist network from which the next attack might come and choose to attack Iraq, who never had terrorists before the US invaded. Might want to check out the YouTube - 'How to create an Angry American' http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OgfzqulvhlQ for a response to this tale. He fabricates another reason that the US attacked Iraq for anticipatory self defense that would imply that Iraq attacked or would attack the US or had the capability to do so. Based on that logic, any country in the world can be attacked because they may one day be a threat, regardless if they actually are or not. Even individuals who disagree may one day be a threat, so Feith logic would invade or kill them. Then he dismisses the propaganda eminent threat that the Bush administration used. And let's not forget the Curveball faulty intelligence that Colin Powell used to justify the war with his cartoon drawings of 'facts'. Guess if you throw enough crap reasons at the wall on why Iraq was invaded the Bush administration thinking is that something will eventually stick, though it still stinks. How Did Iraq Get Its WMD? - We Sold Them To Saddam http://www.rense.com/general29/wesold.htm But check out. Iraq's WMD: The Lie that Will Never Die http://www.dissidentvoice.org/Articles8/Nimmo_Iraq-WMD-Lies.htm Basically the WMD's the US did give Saddam was useless due to the shelf life of the material. Wow, what a threat, of useless WMD's and aged aircraft and tanks with no spare parts, or for that matter any major weapon manufacturing capability. Facts are the UN weapon inspectors determined there were no WMD's to be found in Iraq. The illegal invasion was engineered through propaganda, and any killings in Iraq were a war crime. From the war crime of torture in Iraq like in Abu Ghraib to the millions of men, women, and children brutally killed, to the food (or lack thereof) and water, poisoned through depleted uranium, its economy decimated, cluster bombs, white phosphorous, and the destruction of the Iraqi culture. Let's not forget the American soldier lives, over 4000 for these lies and the theft of Iraqi oil. And you thought this was to lower gas prices. It's to control the oil, charge as much as possible to tax the world for it, force the US economy off of oil, thereby preventing money from going overseas to the oil producers of the world like Saudi Arabia, Russia, and the rest. Though the carbon tax will penalize those who benefit from their oil.
500 shells filled with Sarin or Mustard Gas have been found in Iraq since 2003 according to a declassified US report. The munitions were said to be defunct, unusable, mislaid, pre-91 stock & so not effectively part of any ongoing WMD program that we had accused Saddam of... BUT The Bush Administration have kept very quiet about it. The Mainstream Press - although mentioning it briefly - has kept very quite about it WHY? Because it's the stuff WE SOLD THEM back in the 80's!!!!!! Back when America & the UK were sending Chemical Precursors including Anthrax & even PHOSPHOROUS FLUORIDE for use in making Sarin. A declassified U.S. state dept. cable also shows that America instructed their UN delegate to block a draft resolution condemning Saddam's use of Chemical Weapons in '84 Check out the Links to sources below. ****************************** Rumsfeld 'offered help to Saddam' The Guardian December 31, 2002 "The US provided less conventional military equipment than British or German companies but it did allow the export of biological agents, including anthrax; vital ingredients for chemical weapons; and cluster bombs sold by a CIA front organisation in Chile, the report says." "On November 1 1983, the secretary of state, George Shultz, was passed intelligence reports of "almost daily use of CW [chemical weapons]" by Iraq." "However, 25 days later, Ronald Reagan signed a secret order instructing the administration to do "whatever was necessary and legal" to prevent Iraq losing the war." "Howard Teicher, an Iraq specialist in the Reagan White House, testified in a 1995 affidavit that the then CIA director, William Casey, used a Chilean firm, Cardoen, to send cluster bombs to use against Iran's "human wave" attacks." "A 1994 congressional inquiry also found that dozens of biological agents, including various strains of anthrax, had been shipped to Iraq by US companies, under licence from the commerce department. Furthermore, in 1988, the Dow Chemical company sold $1.5m-worth (£930,000) of pesticides to Iraq despite suspicions they would be used for chemical warfare. " http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2002/dec/31/iraq.politics ****************************** On March 4, 1984, a Dept of State Cable from George P.Shultz to the U.S. Interests Section in Iraq shows that a shipment of 22,000 pounds of phosphorous fluoride being sent to Iraq via Europe was being held back pending further advice; It requests the interests section advises the Iraq Ministry of Foreign Affairs that; "We anticipate making a public condemnation of Iraqi use of Chemical Weapons in the near future" On Iraqi use of U.S. chemicals to make CW: "When we become aware of attempts to do so, we will act to prevent their export to Iraq." (Something the American's know fine well that Saddam is doing) http://www.gwu.edu/~nsarchiv/NSAEBB/NSAEBB82/iraq42.pdf ****************************** The Iranians drafted a UN Resolution about Iraqi use of Chemical Weapons. The Dept. of State sent a cable to the Mission to the European Office of the UN instructing the U.S. delegate to; "work to develop general Western position in support of a motion to take 'No Decision' on Iranian draft resolution on use of chemical weapons by Iraq." Failing to get support for such a motion, the U.S. "should abstain" (effectively vetoing the resolution). http://www.gwu.edu/~nsarchiv/NSAEBB/NSAEBB82/iraq47.pdf ****************************** Two Republican politicians 'leaked' the report to the World in a press conference, but only a few papers ran the story, before it died away: ****************************** Report: Hundreds of WMDs Found in Iraq Fox News Thursday, June 22, 2006 "Asked why the Bush administration, if it had known about the information since April or earlier, didn't advertise it, Hoekstra conjectured that the president has been forward-looking and concentrating on the development of a secure government in Iraq." (That is one seriously uninformed Republican politician) http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,200499,00.html You will have to cut & paste that one into your address bar. ****************************** For Diehards, Search for Iraq's W.M.D. Isn't Over New York Times June 23, 2006 On the 500 shells containing Sarin or Mustard Gas Thomas G. McInerney, a Retired Air Force Lieutenant General, who appears as a commentator on Fox News is quotes as saying: "I'm amazed that the mainstream media hasn't picked this up." http://www.nytimes.com/2006/06/23/us/23believers.html?_r=1&scp=4&sq=500%20shells%20sarin&st=cse&oref=slogin ****************************** For More infro including declassified documents reporting U.S. complicity in Saddam's gassing of the Kurds, check out my other vid: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0fZUYqp3dCM ****************************** Video & Music by CapitalistHolocaust
U.S.-Iraqi offensive of Nov 7 2004 Journalists embedded with U.S. military units, although limited in what they may report, have reported the following: On November 7, 2004, a force of over 2,000+\- U.S. and 600+\- Iraqi troops began a concentrated assault on Fallujah with air strikes, artillery, armor, and infantry. They seized the rail yards North of the city, and pushed into the city simultaneously from the North and West taking control of the volatile Jolan and Askari districts. Rebel resistance was as strong as expected rebels fought very hard as they fell back. By nightfall on November 9, 2004, the U.S. troops had almost reached the heart of the city. U.S. military officials stated that 1,000 to 6,000 insurgents were believed to be in the city, they appear to be organized, and fought in small groups, of three to 25. Many insurgents were believed to have slipped away amid widespread reports that the U.S. offensive was coming. During the assault, Marines and Iraqi soldiers endured sniper fire and destroyed booby traps, much more than anticipated. Ten U.S. troops were killed in the fighting and 22 wounded in the first two days of fighting. Insurgent casualty numbers were estimated at 85 to 90 killed or wounded. Several more days of fighting were anticipated as U.S. and Iraqi troops conducted house-to-house searches for weapons, booby traps, and insurgents. On 9 November, CNN Correspondent Karl Penhaul reported the use of cluster bombs in the offensive: "The sky over Falluja seems to explode as U.S. Marines launch their much-trumpeted ground assault. War planes drop cluster bombs on insurgent positions and artillery batteries fire smoke rounds to conceal a Marine advance." November 10, 2004 reports by the Washington Post suggest that U.S. armed forces used white phosphorus grenades and/or artillery shells, creating walls of fire in the city. Doctors working inside Fallujah report seeing melted corpses of suspected insurgents. The use of WP ammunition was confirmed from various independent sources, including U.S. troops who had suffered WP burns due to 'friendly fire'. On November 16, 2005 The Independent reported that Pentagon spokesman Lieutenant Colonel Barry Venable "disclosed that (white phosphorus) had been used to dislodge enemy fighters from entrenched positions in the city"..."We use them primarily as obscurants, for smokescreens or target marking in some cases. However it is an incendiary weapon and may be used against enemy combatants.But a day before, Robert Tuttle, the U.S. ambassador to London, denied that white phosphorus was deployed as a weapon: "US forces do not use napalm or white phosphorus as weapons." On November 13, 2004 a Red Crescent convoy containing humanitarian aid was delayed from entering Fallujah by the U.S. army, under the suspicion that the convoy was carrying weapons to the insurgents, as other humanitarian convoys had attempted earlier. On November 13, 2004, a U.S. Marine with 3rd Battalion, 1st Marines was videotaped shooting a wounded, unarmed prisoner to death in a mosque. The incident, which came under investigation, created controversy throughout the world. The man was shot at close range after he and several other badly wounded Iraqi prisoners had previously been left behind overnight in the mosque by the U.S. Marines. The Marine shooting the man had been mildly injured by insurgents in the same mosque the day before, and was later acquitted of the charge of manslaughter in May 2005 on grounds that he had reason to believe the man was armed. On November 16, 2004, a Red Cross official told Inter Press Service that "at least 800 civilians" had been killed in Fallujah and indicated that "they had received several reports from refugees that the military had dropped cluster bombs in Fallujah, and used a phosphorus weapon that caused severe burns." As of November 18, 2004, the U.S. military reported 1200 insurgents killed and 1000 captured. U.S. casualties were 51 killed and 425 wounded, and the Iraqi forces lost 8 killed and 43 wounded. On December 2, 2004, the U.S. death toll in Fallujah operation reached 71 killed. Some of the tactics said to be used by the insurgents included playing dead and attacking, surrendering and attacking, and rigging dead or wounded with bombs. In the November 13th incident mentioned above, the U.S. Marine alleged the insurgent was playing dead Of the 100 mosques in the city, about 60 were used as fighting positions by the insurgents. The U.S. and Iraqi military swept through all mosques used as fighting positions, destroying them, leading to great resentment from local residents.
Excerpt
...has seen gruesome evidence gathered by the Italian RAI TV network documenting America's use of deadly and horrific white phosphorus weapons, including grenades, mortars, and artillery shells, on civilians in Iraq. Weaponized white phosphorus, also called "Willy...
Source Info
UK Indymedia Newswire
http://www.indymedia.org.uk/en/2007/11/386164.html
Excerpt
...and the army conforms to international regulations and standards." The United States has acknowledged using incendiary white-phosphorus munitions in a 2004 assault against insurgents in the Iraqi city of Falluja. It says using them against enemy fighters is...
Source Info
Xtra
http://xtramsn.co.nz/news/0,,11965-6469771,00.html
Excerpt
...acknowledged for the first time that it attacked Hezbollah targets during the second Lebanon war with phosphorus shells. White phosphorus causes very painful and often lethal chemical burns to those hit by it, and until recently Israel maintained that it only...
Source Info
Haaretz
Related Topics
http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/pages/ShArt.jhtml?itemNo=777549&contrassID=1&subContrassID=5
Excerpt
...up to an estimated 8,000 more remaining in Lebanon—are highly flammable, and a viable target for WP munitions. White phosphorus shells are also useful as a psychological weapon against entrenched position. The U.S. forces in Fallujah used a combination...
Source Info
Confederate Yankee
Related Topics
http://confederateyankee.mu.nu/archives/188047.php
Artillery shells being used by Israel Defense Force members in Lebanon is a type of dual and multi-use weapon the neocons falsely accused Saddam Hussein of possessing. The canister artillery shell is marketed as an anti-land mine fuel-air bomb, its payload includes the chemicals used in white phosphorous weapons, and chemical weapons. Thermobaric bombs contain polymer-bonded explosives or solid fuel-air explosives in their payloads.
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