Human Rights Watch: Israel Dropped Cluster Bombs on Civilians in
Lebanon in Violation of Geneva Conventions
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Speaking from Beirut, human rights investigator Peter Bouckaert
tells Democracy Now: "We're very concerned that Israel is using
these indiscriminate weapons it's unacceptable and a violation of
the Geneva Conventions because these are indiscriminate and very
very dangerous weapons." [includes rush transcript]
The United Nations has launched an emergency appeal for the
international community to help the people of Lebanon. Emergency
Relief Coordinator Jan Egeland said $150 million is needed urgently.
A total of about 800,000 people have been forced to flee their
homes. Food, water, fuel and medical supplies are running out in
parts of the country. The UN says entire communities have been cut
off because Israel has systemtically destroyed the country's
networks of roads and bridges. Meanwhile, questions are being raised
as to whether Israel is violating international law. On Sunday, UN
High Commissioner Louise Arbour told CNN Israel's actions in Lebanon
could lead to the prosecution of its military commanders. Meanwhile,
Human Rights Watch says Israel is shelling civilian areas with
cluster bombs. On Monday, Democracy Now reached Peter Bouckaert.
He's the emergencies director for Human Rights Watch, currently in
Beirut. He talked about the humanitarian situation on the ground, as
well as the situation for Lebanon's hundreds of thousands of
refugees.
Peter Bouckaert-Emergencies Director for Human Rights Watch
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RUSH TRANSCRIPT
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AMY GOODMAN: On Monday, Democracy Now! reached Peter Bouckaert. He
is the Emergencies Director for Human Rights Watch, currently in
Beirut. He began by talking about the humanitarian situation on the
ground.
PETER BOUCKAERT: Well, I've been working in war zones for Human
Rights Watch for the last decade almost, from Kosovo to Afghanistan
and Iraq and Chechnya and Sierra Leone, and in terms of the dangers
that we face out on the road, this definitely qualifies as one of
the most dangerous places in the world right now. It's very
difficult to deliver humanitarian aid to the south, and villages
throughout the south continue to suffer from heavy bombardment.
We document case after case of civilian homes which have been hit in
the south, where entire families have been wiped out. I mean, one of
the issues I've been absolutely shocked about in terms of this
conflict is the number of children who have been killed, because in
almost all of the cases that we're documenting, we're talking about
a civilian home which is hit, and the parents are killed, along with
four, five, sometimes six children, some as young as one year old.
The youngest casualty that we've documented so far is two months
old.
It's very difficult to deliver aid to those villages in the south
and in the Bekaa Valley, which are subject to the bombardment that
we see. It's almost impossible for the humanitarian community to get
the kind of safe passage guarantee that they need to be able to work
down there and to get their trucks down there to deliver
humanitarian supplies, and even ambulances have been hit in the
south in the last few days.
On the other side of the coin, it's also very difficult for
villagers who are stuck in these villages in the south to leave
their homes, even though Israel has ordered the immediate evacuation
of all villages south of the Litani. We're talking about tens of
thousands of people who are effectively stuck in this very active
war zone, who are unable to flee because they are too afraid to
travel on the road. Just yesterday -- well, on Sunday we documented
more than ten cases of civilian cars, which were hit in the south;
more than forty people were wounded, and eight or nine people were
killed, simply for trying to flee to safety. So it really is a very,
very desperate situation throughout Lebanon these days.
Just a few days ago we documented an attack, which took place last
Wednesday, on the village of Blida, in which the Israelis used
cluster munitions. Human Rights Watch has been very critical of the
use of cluster and munitions by the U.S. military, because these are
indiscriminate weapons. Basically what they are is one big shell,
which opens up and drops a number of smaller bomblets over a very
large area. Many of these bomblets don't explode, so they
effectively turn into mines.
In this one attack that we documented one elderly woman was killed
and twelve people were wounded from one family, including seven
children. The husband of the family lost both of his legs, and I
interviewed him in the hospital two days ago. So we're very
concerned that Israel is using these indiscriminate weapons, cluster
bombs, in populated areas. It's simply not acceptable and is a
violation of the Geneva Conventions, because these are
indiscriminate and very, very dangerous weapons.
AMY GOODMAN: Peter Bouckaert of Human Rights Watch also talked about
the plight of Lebanon's refugees.
PETER BOUCKAERT: The United Nations has estimated that there is up
to 500,000 displaced people in Lebanon today. That's almost a
quarter of the population of Lebanon, and I think those numbers are
quite accurate. There's more than a hundred schools in Beirut alone,
who have been packed with refugees. Yesterday, we visited an
underground parking lot of a major shopping center, where refugees
are sleeping on two separate levels of the parking lot. And we go
around on a daily basis to school after school after school, where
every classroom has been taken over by multiple families.
And they're not just people fleeing from the south. There are also
those from Beirut itself, especially from the southern suburbs, who
have lost their homes in this very fierce bombardment of the
southern suburbs, the Shia-dominated suburbs of Lebanon. I can't
emphasize just how vast the destruction is in the southern suburbs.
Walking around there is just a stunning experience. You know, you're
walking around and looking at these fourteen-story apartment
buildings who have just been completely taken down, and you wonder
what the military purpose Israel is hopes to achieve by taking down
these civilian apartment buildings.
Certainly there were in some of these neighborhoods some minor
Hezbollah offices. For example, in one neighborhood we visited,
there was a coop run by Hezbollah and a political office, but we
don't think it justifies the kind of massive destruction that Israel
is causing in these civilian neighborhoods of South Beirut.
I think it's time for the international community to step in and to
stop this onslaught on the civilian population of Lebanon. This is
totally different from the kind of bombardment that we saw in Iraq
and Afghanistan. Certainly we documented a lot of civilian
casualties in Iraq and Afghanistan when we worked there, but at
least in most of those cases we were able to determine what the
specific military objective was that the U.S. hoped to achieve by
these military strikes.
In the case of Lebanon it's very, very difficult for us to see, at
Human Rights Watch, what specific military objectives Israel is
trying to achieve by bombarding these civilian homes in the south
and the civilian neighborhoods of Southern Beirut. It certainly
seems very far removed from fighting a war directly with Hezbollah.
AMY GOODMAN: Peter Bouckaert is Emergencies Director from Human
Rights Watch. He was speaking to us from Beirut.
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Text without context is pretext If your opponent is of choleric temperament, seek to irritate him
Democracy Now! is a syndicated news and opinion radio and television program that airs on over 420 radio and television stations, on cable TV, and both satellite television networks in North America. The flagship national program of the Pacifica Radio network, it also broadcasts on community and NPR stations, public access cable television stations, Free Speech TV (channels 9410 and 9415 of the DISH Network), Link TV (channel 375 of the DirecTV satellite network), and over the internet, including as a "podcast". The program's full name is "Democracy Now! the War and Peace Report." The views of its broadcasters are generally left-wing
I know I can't stand neo-con media... how about you?
Neither can I that's why most of what you see me post is frome Rueters and AP. The left can be even more batty than Neo Cons. I mean look at Moore, Sheehan, and Rall. The three stooges were brain surgeons campared to these people.
Speaking from Beirut, human rights investigator Peter Bouckaert
tells Democracy Now: "We're very concerned that Israel is using
these indiscriminate weapons it's unacceptable and a violation of
the Geneva Conventions
When you fight Militia the Geneva Convention means NOTHING. You expect no quarter and you give no quarter......... The Geneva Convention is a pre-defined rule of engagement between two or more opposing sides that are signatories of the said convention.
Unless I am vey much mistaken, the Hezbo's are NOT signatories of it. It's not worth the paper that it is written on in these cases.
Neither can I that's why most of what you see me post is frome Rueters and AP. The left can be even more batty than Neo Cons. I mean look at Moore, Sheehan, and Rall. The three stooges were brain surgeons campared to these people.
It is hard to get the news now a days without some personal feelings and input... I have listened to the o'reilly factor and others and they annoy the crap out of me.... I feel the American eagle has crippled its left wing and I can understand why the left tends to get "batty" as you will.... Bill maher annoys me too and he is the darling of lefties.... surely there is middle ground.... the "independents" But I have always believed the adage that states "opinions are like A*******.... everyone has one... there is no reason to actually be one".... it is easy to get caught up in one's anger though... seldom however does it make any difference on both the giving and receiving end of a discussion....
Text without context is pretext If your opponent is of choleric temperament, seek to irritate him
It is hard to get the news now a days without some personal feelings and input... I have listened to the o'reilly factor and others and they annoy the crap out of me.... I feel the American eagle has crippled its left wing and I can understand why the left tends to get "batty" as you will.... Bill maher annoys me too and he is the darling of lefties.... surely there is middle ground.... the "independents" But I have always believed the adage that states "opinions are like A*******.... everyone has one... there is no reason to actually be one".... it is easy to get caught up in one's anger though... seldom however does it make any difference on both the giving and receiving end of a discussion....
That's your problem, you think people like Bill O'Rielly and Shaun Hannity speak for the right. You want to truly find out what the right is thinking? Listen to Newt Gingrich when he's on these shows. As for me I go everywhere for info. I go to fox news, cnn, msnbc, the nation, the independent, the telegraph, al-jazeera, arabnews.com, the Jordan times amongst others.
That's your problem, you think people like Bill O'Rielly and Shaun Hannity speak for the right. You want to truly find out what the right is thinking? Listen to Newt Gingrich when he's on these shows. As for me I go everywhere for info. I go to fox news, cnn, msnbc, the nation, the independent, the telegraph, al-jazeera, arabnews.com, the Jordan times amongst others.
The right makes no secret their thoughts and they are unfortunately very loud. I am quite familiar with the ging.... and after listening I don't think I am the one with the problem.....
Text without context is pretext If your opponent is of choleric temperament, seek to irritate him
Aaah! Newt Gingrich is a nut case, ooooooh! The only right-winger I like is Pat Buchanan, he's probably one of VERY FEW right-wingers who's not a complete NeoCon.
As for what people THINK of the right-wing; Politics+$$$+God = RightWing, but look at Buchanan, he's none of those.
"This world is a blank price tag, and whatever value you put on it, is what its worth to you. I have made this world priceless and worthless, so therefore I have placed my value in the afterlife."
Perhaps, although the books I've read of his didn't come off that way to me at all. I know he has made anti-Israel comments in the past though. I think I like him because of his traditional conservative stance on domestic issues, not so much his foreign policy approach.
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