New Labour war criminals

How interesting that so many candidates for the Labour Party leadership want to tell us what a mistake the invasion of Iraq in 2003 was. Of course, it's quite convenient that two of them were not MPs in 2003 and did not have to decide to vote for or against the war in Iraq at the time. Ed Miliband wasn't even in the country so his hands must be clean! He was in the US - no chance of going on an anti-war demonstration there, I suppose. Two of the candidates - Dianne Abbott and John McDonnell voted against the war in Parliament, but bookmakers offer long odds on either of them replacing Gordon Brown.

Ken Loach is also someone who believes it's important to remember these things. This from The Guardian:

Ken Loach is back with an angry look at Iraq

The Guardian reports (May 19^th): The 73-year-old director was a last-minute addition to the competition for this year's Palme d'Or with his film Route Irish, named after the hazardous road that links the green zone in Baghdad to the airport.

"The actual event, the war in Iraq, was so appalling that it takes a long time to see it in perspective." He admits that anger was a motivating force – "anger on behalf of the people who are not in a position to express it" – and he is still angry about a lot of things, not least the UK's recent election.

"It looks like the Labour party is going to remain in the grip of the rightwing and that's the worst news of all. Most of them are war criminals. Those of them who were in the cabinet during the Iraq war are war criminals with collective responsibility for the Iraq war. David Miliband shouldn't be in office, he should be in prison."

The film shines a light on the murky world of private contracting firms operating in Iraq and the controversial Order 17, which puts them above Iraqi law.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/film/2010/may/19/ken-loach-route-irish-cannes

Chickens coming home to roost?

A couple of stories from The Independent this week:

Army to be sued for war crimes over its role in Fallujah attacks

The Independent reports (May 3^rd): The case raises serious questions about the UK's role in the American-led offensive against the city of Fallujah in the autumn of 2004 where hundreds of Iraqis died. After the battle, in which it is alleged that a range of illegal weaponry was used, evidence has emerged of large numbers of children being born with severe birth defects.

Iraqi families who believe their children's deformities are caused by the deployment of the weapons have now begun legal proceedings against the UK Government. They accuse the UK Government of breaching international law, war crimes and failing to intervene to prevent a war crime.

http://news.independentminds.livejournal.com/7035117.html

MoD asked Red Cross to look into Iraq birth defects

The Independent reports (May 6^th): Britain was so concerned about reports from Iraq of an alarming increase in the number of babies being born with deformities that ministers asked the Red Cross to investigate the claims, it has emerged. The Government took the action last year amid allegations that weapons used by American and British forces in Iraq were linked to a rise in foetal abnormalities seven years after the invasion.

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/mod-asked-red-cross-to-look-into-iraq-birth-defects-1964491.html

If you thought Iraq's election would end the occupation....

Turmoil in Iraq threatens US withdrawal plans

The Guardian reports (May 1^st): Iraq continues to be embroiled in its messy post-election coalition-building process. It has become so messy that the US may well be rethinking its withdrawal plans, and particularly its withdrawal of all combat troops at the end of August.

In the past few weeks, amid a number of terror attacks, two key developments have taken place: an order by an electoral panel to have all the votes cast in Baghdad manually recounted; and a ruling that paves the way for banning some elected candidates because of their sympathies for the outlawed Ba'ath party.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2010/may/01/iraq-elections-allawi-maliki