| Author | Message | | Alpha | | Posted: Wed Sep 22, 2004 2:44 pm Post subject: CNN's Dobbs Attacks Annan on Iraq War Legality/Annan speech |
| Annan was absolutely right about what he mentioned about the (Zionist neocon driven) Iraq invasion being illegal... The US knew full well what was going on with the Iraq oil -for-food scandal as JINSA/PNAC associate Dick Cheney had Halliburton was involved with it.
The UN Communication Director was on C-SPAN this morning and mentioned that the USA knew what was going on with the Iraq-oil-for-food scandal.. One can watch his segment when it gets linked at the following URL:
http://www.c-span.org/videoarchives.asp?CatCodePairs=Series,WJE&ArchiveDays=30
Notice (via the above C-SPAN URL as well) how John (Kohn) Kerry (who is a Zionist Jew using the Catholic cover) had his Jewish foreign policy advisor (Wendy Sherman) mention that the US should stand 'shoulder to shoulder' with Israel (so Kerry is hardly for protecting Americans as US support of Israel is the root of the US terror problem as conveyed in James Bamford's 'A Pretext for War' book and in the 'Imperial Hubris' book by CIA operative 'Anonymous').
http://www.nowarforisrael.com
Subject: Fw: CNN's Dobbs Attacks Annan on Iraq War Legality/Annan speech
Date: Tue, 21 Sep 2004 23:48:40 -0400
Kofi Annan excerpts from today's speech:
Speaking at the high-level session of the U.N. General Assembly, Annan
said
"no one was above the law" whether in Sudan, Iraq, Uganda, Russia or
the
Middle East.
"Again and again, we see laws shamelessly disregarded -- those that
ordain
respect for innocent life, for civilians, for the vulnerable --
especially
children," he said.
In Iraq, he said civilians were massacred in cold blood, while relief
workers, journalists and others were "taken hostage and put to death in
the
most barbarous fashion."
"At the same time, we have seen Iraqi prisoners disgracefully abused,"
Annan
said, referring to inmates in the Abu Ghraib prison outside Baghdad who
were
photographed being brutalized by American soldiers.
"Every nation that proclaims the rule of law at home must respect it
abroad.
And every nation that insists on it abroad must enforce it at home," he
said.
You can read more about this historic and incredible speech at:
Annan Warns U.S., World to Respect Rule of Law
http://www.un.org/apps/sg/sgstats.asp?nid=1088
the reason I don't watch CNN is certainly illustrated below. Lou Dobbs
just
doesn't get it. Personally I watch newscasts that have reporters with
brains. Dobbs doesn't cut it.
Jim Bronke
> FAIR-L
> Fairness & Accuracy In Reporting
> Media analysis, critiques and activism
>
> http://www.fair.org/activism/dobbs-annan.html
>
> ACTION ALERT:
> CNN's Dobbs Attacks Annan on Iraq War Legality
>
> September 21, 2004
>
> When U.N. Secretary General Kofi Annan said in a September 15
interview
> that he thought the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq was illegal, CNN's Lou
Dobbs
> was outraged, calling it "another incredible outburst by Kofi Annan"
> (9/16/04). But Dobbs and his CNN reporters neglected to pursue the
most
> important aspect of the story: Was Annan right?
>
> In a BBC interview, Annan said the war was "not in conformity with
the
> Security Council, with the U.N. Charter." When asked, "It was
illegal?,"
> Annan replied: "Yes, if you wish," adding: "I have indicated it is
not in
> conformity with the U.N. Charter; from our point of view and from the
> Charter point of view, it was illegal."
>
> This did not sit well with Dobbs, whose September 16 report began:
> "Outrage and anger today after an astonishing statement about Iraq by
U.N.
> Secretary General Kofi Annan. Annan said the United States-led
invasion of
> Iraq was illegal."
>
> Dobbs reported that "U.S. allies Britain and Australia immediately
> rejected Annan's assertion. President Bush said he has no regrets
about
> ordering the invasion." CNN correspondent Kitty Pilgrim's segment
quoted
> the U.S ambassador to the United Nations, the Australian Prime
Minister, a
> representative from the conservative Hoover Institute, and Edward
Walker
> from the Middle East Institute, who said, "I don't understand quite
what
> he means by legal."
>
> After Pilgrim's report, Dobbs continued by referring to Annan's
"bizarre
> statement" and lamenting "the interference that was being run over
the
> course of the past two years, in point of fact, by the Germans and
the
> French and now the French in Iran, the Chinese in the Sudan-- is, in
fact,
> the United Nations paralyzed?" Pilgrim responded by saying that "it
> certainly doesn't seem to be able to move forward on certain issues.
In
> Iraq, it seems like revisionist policy to go back to this issue in
the
> U.N. today. It seems to have some trouble moving forward on many
issues."
>
> Whether or not looking back two years to the origins of an
increasingly
> violent situation is "revisionist policy" is debatable. The more
> important question journalistically would be whether or not Annan's
> comments accurately reflect international law. CNN's Lou Dobbs
Tonight,
> however, didn't bother to interview international law experts about
the
> matter. If they had, they may have found that, as the Washington
Times
> put it (3/21/03), "Legal experts, however, are divided on the war's
> legality, with many saying that the existing U.N. resolutions do not
go as
> far as to authorize the use of force." A few days earlier, the Los
> Angeles Times (3/18/03) included comments from several international
law
> experts who thought the war violated international law.
>
> Many legal experts contend that the United Nations resolutions
regarding
> Iraq did not give the U.S. and its allies the power to initiate war
> without further action from the Security Council. And the U.N.
Charter
> does lay out specific conditions for hostile action; as Article 39
> states, "The Security Council shall determine the existence of any
threat
> to the peace, breach of the peace, or act of aggression and shall
make
> recommendations, or decide what measures shall be taken ... to
maintain or
> restore international peace and security." The Charter authorizes
the use
> of force only if sanctioned by the Security Council, or if a country
is
> attacked or threatened with imminent attack (Article 51): "Nothing in
the
> present Charter shall impair the inherent right of individual or
> collective self-defense if an armed attack occurs against a Member of
the
> United Nations, until the Security Council has taken measures
necessary to
> maintain international peace and security."
>
> But without even referring to the U.N. Charter or other standards of
> international law, CNN continued the discussion the following night
> (9/17/04) as guest anchor Kitty Pilgrim called Annan's statement
> "outrageous," then added: "More controversy tonight after Kofi Annan
says
> the war in Iraq is illegal. Critics say he is encouraging this
country's
> enemies and putting American troops' lives at risk." The only
"critic"
> offered by CNN was Nile Gardiner of the right-wing Heritage
Foundation.
>
> For the record, Annan would certainly not be the first person to make
such
> "outrageous" comments. In fact, last year the prominent
neoconservative
> hawk Richard Perle, who serves on the Pentagon's Defense Policy
Board,
> indicated that he thought that the invasion violated international
law
> (Guardian, 11/20/03), which Perle said "would have required us to
leave
> Saddam Hussein alone." Perle argued that French intransigence left
the
> U.S. with "no practical mechanism consistent with the rules of the
U.N.
> for dealing with Saddam Hussein," and therefore, Perle said, "I think
in
> this case international law stood in the way of doing the right
thing."
>
> Perle's sentiments toward international law were in a sense echoed by
> George W. Bush, who mocked a question about the legality of excluding
> countries like Germany and France from Iraq's reconstruction
(12/11/03):
> "International law? I'd better call my lawyer." Bush's comments
elicited
> little criticism, and merited only a passing mention on Lou Dobbs
Tonight.
> Now that Annan has brought up a substantive claim about the war's
legal
> basis, CNN's Lou Dobbs Tonight considers these statements of fact
> "outrageous."
>
>
> ACTION:
> Encourage CNN's Lou Dobbs Tonight to broaden its coverage of Annan's
> remarks by bringing on international law experts-- including those
who
> contend that the war in Iraq was in fact illegal.
>
> CONTACT:
> CNN
> Lou Dobbs Tonight
> mailto:loudobbs@cnn.com
>
> As always, please remember that your comments are taken more
seriously if
> you maintain a polite tone. Please cc fair@fair.org with your
> correspondence.
>
> Read more of Dobbs' commentary here:
> http://www.cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/0409/16/ldt.00.html
> http://www.cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/0409/17/ldt.00.html
>
> ----------
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Last edited by Alpha on Wed Sep 22, 2004 3:03 pm; edited 1 time in total | |  | | Alpha | | Posted: Wed Sep 22, 2004 3:01 pm Post subject: Bush, Annan trade barbs over Iraq at UN |
| Bush, Annan trade barbs over Iraq at UN
UNITED NATIONS (AFP) - UN Secretary General Kofi Annan (news - web sites) and US President George W. Bush (news - web sites) traded fresh barbs over Iraq (news - web sites) at a sombre meeting of world leaders held in the shadow of Iraq's ongoing bloodshed.
Opening the UN's annual debate, Annan said Iraqi prisoners had been "disgracefully abused" and made veiled references to the United States in a wide-ranging speech calling on all nations to obey the rule of law.
Bush fired back that the United States had enforced "the just demands of the world" by ousting Saddam Hussein (news - web sites) in a war that has left world opinion still bitterly divided more than one year after the US-led invasion.
Aides had insisted Annan, an outspoken critic of the war who last week called it "illegal," would be keen to avoid re-opening old wounds. But he cited the prisoner abuse among "flagrant" examples of lawlessness across the globe.
"In Iraq, we see civilians massacred in cold blood, while relief workers, journalists and other non-combatants are taken hostage and put to death in the most barbarous fashion," Annan said with Bush in the audience.
"At the same time, we have seen Iraqi prisoners disgracefully abused," he said, drawing a parallel between the Iraq bloodshed and the prisoner scandal in a way destined to irk the US administration.
Annan has repeatedly been at odds with Bush's contention that the UN Security Council, which had passed a resolution threatening "serious consequences" for Saddam, had provided the legal basis for the war.
The UN chief last week called the war "illegal" and on Tuesday said Security Council resolutions were the "best foundation" for bringing law to a lawless world marked by bloodshed, genocide and attacks on the innocent.
But Bush, who said the United Nations (news - web sites) risked becoming irrelevant last year by failing to come to consensus on Iraq, again defended the war and called on the world community to help that country achieve democracy and stability.
"The Security Council promised serious consequences for his defiance and the commitments we make must have meaning," the US president said in a speech that received polite applause from the dignitaries on hand.
"When we say serious consequences, for the sake of peace there must be serious consequences," Bush said. "And so a coalition of nations enforced the just demands of the world."
Annan also repeated a warning he gave the assembly last year, that the United Nations was at a "fork in the road" following the UN split over the US decision to launch the war without full backing from the UN Security Council.
With a high-level panel of experts due to report to Annan in December on how to reform the council, in an effort to prevent a repeat of the international crisis, he appealed to world leaders to take action.
"If you, the political leaders of the world, cannot agree or reach agreement on the way forward, history will take the decision for you, and the interests of your peoples may go by default," Annan said.
"More than ever, the world needs an effective mechanism through which to see common solutions to common problems. That is what this organisation was created for," he said.
Amid the disagreement over Iraq, however, the two found common ground on the crisis in Sudan just days after the Security Council passed a new resolution pressing Khartoum to end the bloodshed in Sudan's Darfur region.
Sudan has resisted international pressure over the crisis, which has left an estimated 50,000 people dead, but both Bush and Annan said the world must do more to end the spiral of death and devastation.
"Things are happening there which must shock the conscience of every human being," Annan said, calling on the world to support an international rule of law.
"History will judge us very harshly if we let ourselves be deflected in this task or think we are excused from it by invocations of national sovereignty," he said.
Tuesday's session, due to wrap up at 2300 GMT, opened a two-week meeting of presidents, ministers and other leaders from around the globe. | | | | | ©2002-2009 WarWithoutEnd.co.uk |
