The western powers did not do enough to protect civilians during the assault on Raqqa, prima facie evidence proved that several coalition attacks that killed and injured civilians violated international humanitarian law.
by Anwar A Khan
The devils would not listen to the Scriptures. Seven decennia are on after the Second World War to meddle into the internal affairs of other nations by America and its administrations. Time has rife enough for their mighty power to diminish. Nature’s own punishment must befall on them to mend them. I have tried to analyse in this piece of article how much misdeed-mongers this evil force of the world look like. The people in general of the U.S. should raise their voices in a louder tone in unison to stop the American government to refrain it from doing more harm to people of all countries across the world. The American citizens should also consider that their own innumerable bright sons and daughters are being killed because of the sinful acts committed by their government(s).
Concerning Iran
Still reeling from recent events in Syria, President Donald Trump and his administration face a looming crisis in neighbouring Iraq. In a country where thousands of U.S. troops have died and thousands more are still deployed, both the United States and rival Iran are backing an embattled prime minister as popular calls for his ouster could threaten their influence and lead to civil war.
The latest round of protests first emerged in Iraq in July 2018, about a year after former Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi declared victory over the Islamic State militant group (ISIS) in a campaign that united the Iraqi military, Iran-backed militias, a U.S.-led coalition and Kurdish forces. The unrest has pressured Abadi's successor, Prime Minister Adel Abdul-Mahdi, to the cusp of quitting.
While Iraqis are openly questioning if Abdul-Mahdi can bring unity and restore calm to Iraq, the Trump administration and some lawmakers support the current prime minister. A senior State Department official tells Newsweek, "The prime minister and the team that he has is a good government and probably the best we could have hoped for."
Some lawmakers agree, "Abdul-Mahdi is a friend. I hope he can straighten this out. I think he is a good guy, but corruption is rampant. Young people are tired of it. You see a backlash in Lebanon and you see a backlash in Iraq. Young people wanting their country to deliver better services and more hope," Republican Senator Lindsey Graham of South Carolina told Newsweek. "I like Abdul-Mahdi, and I think he has the confidence of the Kurds and the Sunnis. But he's got to get his government to be more acceptable to younger Iraqis, and this is sort of a, you know, an 'Iraq Spring,' for lack of a better way of saying it."
The term "Iraq Spring" is a reference to the so-called "Arab Spring" wave of demonstrations that swept the Arab World in 2011 as a mass movement against long-standing leaders failing to address socioeconomic issues that disproportionately affected the region's youth. Once seen as a beacon of hope, however, these protests devolved into deadly civil wars in Libya, Syria and, later on, Yemen—cautionary tales cited by Shiite Muslim militia leader Muqtada al-Sadr in his latest warning designed to urge Abdul-Mahdi to leave.
Neither the U.S. nor Iran want this; however, as they try to assert their own influence through a fragile system now the target of a mass uprising.
Iraq protest flags fire unrest
Iraqi protesters burn items to block the road during clashes with security forces following an anti-government demonstration in the Islamic shrine city of Karbala, south of Iraq's capital Baghdad, on October 25 2019. Two dozen demonstrators were reportedly killed in renewed rallies across Baghdad and Iraq's south by live rounds and tear gas.
Abdul-Mahdi was elected last year as a compromise between influential rival militia leaders Sadr and Hadi al-Amiri. Sadr is threatening a no-confidence vote that could lead to a political breakdown as the top Sairoon coalition, of which Sadr was a member, entered the opposition amid worsening bloodshed. With large parts of the country's infrastructure still decimated, economic woes unaddressed and lingering security concerns, Iraqis from nearly all walks of life have taken to the streets, where reports have risen significantly in recent weeks of deadly clashes with security forces and various militias incorporated into the armed forces.
Iraq has suffered from decades of conflict, stemming back to a devastating eight-year war with Iran in the 1980s and two U.S. attacks in the next two decades, the latter of which saw the overthrow of longtime leader Saddam Hussein. The U.S. installed a new government, representing Iraq's Shiite Muslim majority as a deadly Sunni Muslim insurgency ravaged the country.
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During this period, Sadr and Amiri led Iran-backed Shiite Muslim militias that targeted both U.S. troops, who withdrew from the country in 2011, and Al-Qaeda, which rebranded as ISIS and only grew in strength over time. Recent years saw U.S. forces and Sadr and Amiri's groups—known as Saraya al-Salam, formerly the Mahdi Army, and the Badr Organisation, respectively, and now reorganised under the umbrella of the Popular Mobilisation Forces battling the so-called jihadi organisation that came to be known as ISIS.
When Iraq held its first elections since ISIS' defeat last year, Sadr's Sairoon alliance came out on top, followed by Amiri's Fatah bloc. Both men have ties to Iran, but the former has increasingly pushed back on Tehran's growing influence in Baghdad, as the latter embraced it.
Asked if any parties were instigating the deterioration in Iraq's security situation, Shirwan Mirza, an Iraqi Kurdish member of parliament affiliated with the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK), told Newsweek it was "not very clear, but Sadr and Abadi want this." Amiri initially signalled support for Abdul-Mahdi's ousting as well but appears to have changed his mind, possibly under the advise of Iran's Revolutionary Guards Quds Force commander Qassem Soleimani, a vastly influential figure in Iraq. Reuters cited multiple sources attesting to a recent meeting between the two men.
Iran has managed to take advantage of regional unrest to establish itself as an active player in nations like Syria, where U.S. lawmakers were still widely focused on Trump's decision to withdraw troops from the country's north, a move that sought to avoid a fight between two partners—Syrian Kurds that helped the Pentagon defeat ISIS and NATO ally Turkey that considers some Kurdish militias to be terrorist organisations. Even amid the fluid situation in Syria, however, more members of Congress were keeping an eye on Iraq, though there was little consensus as to what the U.S. strategy was or should be.
Iraq militia leaders Sadr Muhandis Amiri
Iraqi Shiite Muslim cleric Muqtada al-Sadr (L); Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis (C), the deputy chairman of the Iraqi Popular Mobilisation Forces and Hadi al-Amiri (R), who is in charge of the Shiite Muslim Badr Brigades, gave a joint press conference on October 18, 2016 in the holy city of Najaf. The three men and their respective forces were crucial to defeating ISIS and were lately incorporated into the state's security apparatus.
Democratic Senator Tim Kaine of Virginia told Newsweek that "the instability and the protests in Iraq raise concern for a number of reasons." "The key is that the Iraqis are partners of ours so the first thing is, what they think would be helpful. The last thing we need to do—because sometimes our involvement can be cause for unrest by some, so we have to do that in a way that the Iraqi government, our partners, think would be helpful," Kaine said. "I don't yet know what they think would be helpful, if anything, so that's all part of trying to figure out what the plan is but the best way for this to happen is for the administration to come forward and 'Okay, here's what we see here's what we think a good plan is, now ask us questions challenge us on pieces of it, and we'll get to a better work product that way."
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Democratic Rep. Ruben Gallego of Arizona served as a U.S. Marine in Iraq during the violent post-invasion period in Iraq and, while he felt the situation had yet to approach open conflict, he called for Abdul-Mahdi to resign before it did.
"This started, obviously, with a push by a lot of Iraqi citizens wanting a government that was less corrupt, more transparent and less abusive," Gallego told Newsweek. "At this point, this is starting to spread along sectarian lines, which is very dangerous. I think, honestly, that the Iraqi government is just going to have to resign itself and start new to keep the country together."
"I believe there could be a collapse of government," he added. "I don't think, necessarily, that leads to a civil war. I was in the middle of the last civil war, where there was an active Sunni uprising against the Shia-led government. I don't think that is where Iraq's history is right now, but I do think that there's going to have to be an overhaul in government."
Gallego argued that "these Iraqi citizens are also sick of the influence of Iran and Iran is, I think, afraid of losing more control over this Iraqi government. And unfortunately, I think they're going to try to influence the outcome, also."
Republican Rep. Adam Kinzinger of Illinois similarly said he "shares the concerns over this political unrest in the region but also about the role that Iran has played in the strife here."
Iraq has been among the most volatile venues of the U.S.- Iran feud that has played out across the Middle East. The U.S. initially backed the Iraqi invasion of Iran that followed the latter's 1979 Islamic Revolution and though the U.S. tacitly offered support to both sides of the conflict came to view both countries as foes until regime change against Hussein made Baghdad an ally of both Washington and Tehran.
The U.S. and Iran overcame decades of diplomatic isolation in 2015 to forge the 2015 nuclear deal, and historic accord also endorsed by China, the European Union, France, Germany, Russia and the United Kingdom. Last year, Trump unilaterally ditched this deal, setting off a cycle of tensions that have brought the U.S. and Iran to the brink of exchanging blows.
Iraqi Prime Minister Adel Abdul-Mahdi security forces
Iraqi Prime Minister Adel Abdul-Mahdi addressed advisers and members of his security forces amid widespread unrest, October 23 2019. Though backed by both the U.S. and Iran, Abdul-Mahdi felt increasingly pressured by the Iraq people to resign.
Media office of the Iraqi Prime Minister
The result has been a new air of hostility for the U.S. presence in Iraq, especially among the many Iran-backed militias now officially part of the state security apparatus. After apparent rocket attacks last year near Washington's embassy in Baghdad and consulate in Irbil, the State Department evacuated all non-emergency personnel, but about 5,000 troops on the frontlines of what may be a new intractable bout in the region.
Citing Iraqi sources, Democratic Rep. Tom Malinowski of New Jersey described pulling these diplomats out as "the U.S. washing their hands of the country."
In a statement published shortly after Newsweek's article was published Friday, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo addressed Baghdad directly, saying that "the United States welcomes any serious efforts made by the Government of Iraq to address the ongoing problems in Iraqi society."
"The Government of Iraq should listen to the legitimate demands made by the Iraqi people who have taken to the streets to have their voices heard. The United States is closely monitoring the situation and from the beginning we have called on all sides to reject violence," Pompeo said. "The Government of Iraq's investigation into the violence in early October lacked sufficient credibility and the Iraqi people deserve genuine accountability and justice."
"As the efforts announced by President Salih begin the recently imposed severe restrictions on freedom of the press and of expression must be relaxed," he added.
"Press freedom is inherent to democratic reform. The U.S. government continues to support Iraqi institutions, the Iraqi people, and Iraq's security, stability, and sovereignty."
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Though the beleaguered Abdul-Mahdi has vowed to stay until Sadr and Amiri could come up with a replacement, one Iraqi intelligence official told Newsweek that his time may soon be up. "The young Iraqi Shiite youth want overthrow PM Adel Abdul-Mahdi, the Iranians don't want to lose him," the official said. "The Iranians lost this battle, but they're far from losing the war."
"We are worried about the whole system of Iraq because of this unrest," Mirza told Newsweek. "It may cause that Turkey and Iran and even Saudi Arabia may intervene in Iraq and it may lead to the worst."
Mirza said the current situation was "the result of being guns in the hands of militias and the weakness of state in Iraq," along with the fact that "the USA did not support Adil Abdul-Mahdi and the Iraqi government to do good things for Iraqi people, especially after fighting ISIS."
As for the Kurds, who are largely split politically between the PUK and the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) in administering the north's autonomous Kurdistan Regional Government, Mirza said that, so far, they have managed to "act as one force," not "divided" in order "to defend the Kurdistan region."
"They are not with any militia”, Mirza told Newsweek, only the peshmerga, the official Iraqi Kurdish self-defense forces. Asked if the Kurdish region was prepared to defend itself in the event of a crisis elsewhere in the country, he said, "it must be because, if the situation continues, we do not know what the future of Iraq is."
Iraq protests unrest bridge green zone
Iraqi protesters gather on Al-Jumhuriya Bridge which leads to the high-security Green Zone, during ongoing anti-government demonstrations in the capital Baghdad on October 31 2019. Iraqi President Barham Salih vowed to hold early elections in response to a month of deadly protests, but demonstrators said the move fell far short of their demands for a political overhaul.
Abdul-Mahdi has watched on as the country's politics polarised and persistent rumours have emerged regarding his desire to resign. Sarkawt Shams, a member of parliament affiliated with the New Generation party, told Newsweek he witnessed the Prime Minister's desperation nearly firsthand during a meeting with Iraqi President Barham Salih.
"I had meeting with the Iraqi president when the PM called him and told him that he is done," Shams said, describing how the Prime Minister "found himself alone and somehow betrayed by those who vowed to support him."
Shams ascribed the unrest to "protests and political rivalries among Shia Groups" but noted that "no doubt foreign powers play a huge role, Iran directly." He said "Saudi Arabia and the U.S. may play indirect roles through media campaigns and pushing Iraqi figures to either make things worse or better."
With the situation growing direr by the day, the lawmaker told Newsweek, "I am concerned that a government resignation may open the door for armed conflict if forming a new government takes longer."
The U.S.-led combine fighting ISIS have committed war crimes as its airstrikes rained down on civilians trapped by the brutal fighting in the Syrian city of Raqqa last year, a news report claims.
American, British and French strikes on the city from June to October 2017 decimated extended families and neighborhoods as the coalition embarked on a war of annihilation.
The western powers did not do enough to protect civilians during the assault on Raqqa, prima facie evidence proved that several coalition attacks that killed and injured civilians violated international humanitarian law.
The last major city held by ISIS, Raqqa's fall became a powerful symbol of the group's ongoing collapse. June 6, 2019 marks the one-year anniversary of the beginning of the operation to take the city, as Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) and an alliance of Kurdish and Arab militias advanced under the cover of coalition strikes.
After heavy fighting, surviving ISIS fighters were allowed to leave the city in October 2017. The U.S., British and French militaries claimed they did everything possible to minimise the risk of collateral damage during the operation, but in fact, hundreds died and thousands more were injured during the assault.
The U.S. said it fired more than 30,000 artillery rounds during the five-month operation, and American forces were responsible for 90 percent of the airstrikes on the city.
In all cases witnesses reported that there were no fighters in the vicinity at the time of the attacks. Such attacks could be either direct attacks on civilians or civilian objects or indiscriminate attacks.
The situation in Raqqa was dire, as ISIS used minefields, booby traps and snipers to stop civilians fleeing the besieged city. Many innocent residents died alongside the militants, used as human shields.
If the coalition and their SDF allies were ultimately going to grant ISIS fighters safe passage and impunity, what possible military advantage was there in destroying practically an entire city and killing so many civilians?"
"When so many civilians are killed in attack after attack, something is clearly wrong, and to make this tragedy worse, so many months later the incidents have not been investigated. The victims must deserve justice.
All reports of civilian deaths are and will continue to be taken very seriously and all missions didn’t comply fully with international humanitarian law and are planned meticulously to carry out civilian casualties.
The United States committed war crimes of staggering proportions throughout seven decades. It demolished up to 80 percent of the Syrian city of Raqqa, a city with an unrelenting blitzkrieg of bombs and artillery shells that killed hundreds of civilians.
While the US has been officially waging war in Syria to defeat ISIS, the report notes that artillery and airstrikes continued to pound civilian areas even as a deal was struck which allowed thousands of the group’s members to evacuate the city. With at least 2,000 US troops currently illegally occupying Syria, Washington’s ultimate aim is to overthrow the government of Bashar al-Assad and install a regime which is more pliant to the needs of American imperialism.
The human rights group spoke to the Badrans, a family that lost 39 of its members, most of them women and children, to four separate US air strikes as they scrambled to find shelter.
The commander in charge of the assault boasted at its height that the attack on Raqqa was “the most precise air campaign in history.” The Pentagon has absurdly claimed that it killed fewer than 500 civilians in 2017 in all its various military operations across the globe, admitting to just 32 civilian deaths in Raqqa which is a blatant lie only.
Unlike the hysteria generated over the fake gas attack in Douma earlier this year, the revelations of widespread war crimes carried out by the US and its allies in Raqqa, as with the assault itself, have been treated as a non-event by the corporate media. Neither the New York Times nor the Washington Post, the political establishment’s two main newspapers of record, carried any mention of the Amnesty report in their print editions.
The editorialists and commentators in the American media, by and large, argue that Trump has not gone far enough in Syria, and that the US wars and occupations which have been raging for more than 15 years must be expanded to counter any challenge by Russia and Iran to US domination over the Middle East.
Amid the never-ending mudslinging over Trump’s supposed collusion with the Russians to win the 2016 election, all sides agree that the wars for complete control over the region’s oil reserves must continue and in fact be expanded, regardless of the cost in civilian lives.
The media’s failure to report on the atrocities in Raqqa and its coverup of Amnesty’s findings make them complicit in these crimes. They have made a deliberate decision to conceal from the American people the scope of the crimes carried out in their name in an effort to block the development of broad antiwar sentiments into a politically conscious movement against imperialist war.
The ever-compliant media has worked with the Pentagon to falsely portray its wars as bloodless surgical operations in which terrorists are being killed with precision bombs, while in fact the bodies of the innocents continue to pile up. The US effort to retake Mosul in Iraq from ISIS in 2016 and 2017 killed as many as 40,000 civilians, according to an estimate by Iraqi Kurdish intelligence, while more than a million people were displaced. The three-year-old Saudi-led war in Yemen, backed by US Special Forces on the ground, has killed over 13,000 civilians and threatens more than 18 million with starvation.
And now the Trump administration is considering more directly joining the Yemen war, while preparing for a far more dangerous military confrontation with Iran, placing millions more civilians in the crosshairs.
The Devil, also referred to as Satan
The Devil, also referred to as Satan, is best known as the nemesis of good people everywhere. His image and story have evolved over the years, but this malevolent being and his legion of demons continue to strike fear in people from all walks of life as the antithesis of all things good.
Perhaps the most lasting images of the Devil are associated with Hell, which the Bible refers to as a place of everlasting fire prepared for the Devil and his angels. And the U.S. is the Devil number one. I reiterate the American citizens should come forward to stop the U.S. government and its administration from the imperialist aggression and war crimes in countries after countries. Similar way, the peoples across the world should wage a courageous movement against the American imperialism to make the whole world a peaceful one for human habitation.
American acts are terrible. It’s just a terrible situation created by the U.S. government throughout the world. U.S. war crimes are exposed everywhere in the world, it is a long known matter. Let us condemn America in the harshest language to stop them for lingering their atrocities any longer in any country. Down with American imperialism!
-The End –
The writer is a political commentator based in Bangladesh who writes on politics, political and human-centered figures, current and international affairs.
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