Heavy reproaches against US Pentagon: Napalm bombs in the Iraq war
Translation of the original PDF-file from MONITOR-TV , ARD , Germany Click here to view the program.
Report : Heavy accusations against US-Pentagon : Napalm-Bombs in Iraq-War
Reported by : John Goetz, Georg Restle / MONITOR 507
Date : 07.08.2003
Volker Happe (MONITOR-Moderator) : "Napalm. The Horror-weapon from the Vietnam-war . It is internationally banned and outlawed , it's use is forbidden by the Geneva-Conventions . But nevertheless , it was used in the Iraq-war by the US army .
Good evening , welcome at MONITOR .
Until now, the Pentagon denied strictly any use of Napalm in the Iraq-war and repelled all suspicions made by US-journalists who were in Iraq with the US troops as embedded journalists . But this was a lie . As John Goetz and Georg Restle have found out now ."
Pictures from a war from more than 35 years ago . US combat-jets drop Napalm-bombs over Vietnamese villages , devastate an whole country and spread fear and dismay among the population .
Pictures from a war some months ago . The War-victims in Iraq do not know through which kind of weapons they were mutilated . But already since the beginning of this war there was a mean and heavy suspicion .
US-troops on their way to Baghdad . Journalists , who were at this time on the road with the US military, wrote then from really heartbraking scenes after US airraids at the Kuwaiti-Iraqi border:
" It loooked more like a massacre than like after a combat-fight . Dead bodys lying around everywhere . They dropped some kind of explosives and Napalm. "
Napalm ? The same firebombs they used in the Vietnam-War ?
The US journalist James Crawley was on the ground with US troops as an embedded journalist .
He too wanted to know , which kind of bombs exactly were dropped at this time .
James Crawley , US Military Journalist :
" I asked , what kind of bombs they've used , and they said laserbombs , satellite-guided bombs and Napalm." Napalm in the Iraq-War . The US Ministry of Defence rejected this announcements immediately : "We did not used Napalm in Iraq and we won't use it neither ."
Cockpit-pictures from an US combat-jet in Iraq . What exactly was dropped from the US-jets over Iraq ? Firebombs ? Napalm ?
We drive to San Diego , to the base of the US Marine Corps who were at service in Iraq . To us , the speaker confirmed the use of Napalm-firebombs .
Joseph Boehm , Colonel US Marine Corps :
" In the 30 wardays we used only 30 canisters . The marines used it on their way to Baghdad . Where it was exactly , I don't know . It is a lethal weapon and also a psychological weapon ."
These are the firebombs we're talking about : they are labeled MK 77 , an advanced and perfected version of the Napalm-bomb used in Vietnam . The US Military and armament-industry still uses the same name for it : MK 77(Napalm)
James Snyder , Physicians for Social Responsibility :
" There is absolutely no difference in the impact and use of MK 77 and Napalm . They're both made for the same purpose . The only difference lies in their fuel . But both are designed to kill as much humans as possible , attack bunkers and spread fire." We wanted to know from the Pentagon , if these MK 77 bombs were used in the Iraq-war .
A Pentagon-speaker told MONITOR :
" I can confirm , that MK 77 bombs were dropped at the Kuwaiti-Iraqi-border." And on the question , if the MK 77 bombs are indeed Napalm-firebombs , the speaker said : " MK 77 is called
Napalm due to the fact , that their impact on targets resembles remarkable to the use of Napalm."
Therfore it is a fact : The US used in the Iraq-War the same weapons as they did in Vietnam :
Napalm-bombs , one of the most horrible war-weapons of all times , with real heavy damages done especially to all surviving victims .
James Snyder , Physicians for Social Responsibility :
"I can't imagine myself a worse way of death . We all know nightmares from dying in fire . That's the way hell must look . I can't hardly imagine myself to witness an attack with such a weapon . Completely wrapped by a burning liquid and to burn to death."
Pictures from Vietnam . They lead finally to the international ban of such firebombs :
"It is under all circumstances prohibited and forbidden , to target and attack the civilian population , single civilians or any civil objects with incendiary firebombs."
Prof. Hans-Joachim Heintze , University Bochum :
"Napalm-Bombs are against the international law , they are banned by the Geneva-Conventions.
They are banned because they work indiscriminately and without any distinction , they harm in the same way civilians and military targets , and they cause unnecessary sufferings and harm to the victims of these bombs."
But for the US Marines at San Diego , Napalm is just a weapon like all the others too .
Joseph Boehm , Colonel US marine Corps :
"This isn't that important to us . We don't think it's dangerous . To the effects I can't say much , because I haven't been attacked myself by such a weapon until now . I guess it's lethal , that's why we use it , but it's not more lethal than other weapons."3 month ago , the Iraq-War was declared officially terminated . But to some of its truth we will have ourselves probably still to accustom."
Volker Happe : " The lies around the Iraq-war won't obviously take no end."
End of transcript and translation
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english source: http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article4395.htm
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