Killing of Iraq Kurds 'genocide'

[Coastie for Truth]

"The court thinks and considers legally and convincingly proven that the Kurdish population meets requirement under Genocide Conventions as an ethnic group," the ruling said.

"The court has no other conclusion than that these attacks were committed with the intent to destroy the Kurdish population of Iraq."

Correspondents say the outcome of the trial is not expected to have a direct effect on charges being prepared by a special Iraqi tribunal against Saddam Hussein.

[expatriot]

1. I am in no way defending Saddam or belittling the Kurds' tragic history

but shouldn't the word 'genocide' be reserved for instances when it is proven that the motivation of the authority being prosecuted is the motive behind their actions was the complete eradication of a certain people within their area of control?

Was it the intention of Saddam to eradicate Kurds wholly from his area of control. Even a forced exodus from a territory is not genocidesince your goal is not to kill all of a people en masse since you are letting them escape your area of control alive.

Of Saddam's heavy-handed tactics against the Kurds were barbaric as are many counter-insurgencies that take on a racial/ethnic dimension, but genocide? Was he systematically destroying all Kurds are just Kurds that got in his way?

[Coastie for Truth]

6. Many appenders on this forum have a much lower threshold for

calling actions "genocide" and "apartheid."

I live on land stolen from the Ohlone Nation by Father Junipero Serra. I do regard that as genocidal.

[Name removed]

2. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[Coastie for Truth]

5. My avatar is the Red Crystal

adopted by the International Commission of the Red Cross and Red Crescent as a non-demoniational, non-sectarian emblem - "without discrimination". I am a Red Cross Disaster Service Volunteer.

My handle signifies my 1960's era service to the United States of America - the United States Coast Guard -- "Yer enlistment contract sez you gotta go out - it don't say you gotta come back."

I beg to disagree.

[enigma000]

3. Why is this in the I/P forum? n/t

[Coastie for Truth]

4. The OP has a link to the Late Breaking New post.

Some historians would argue that the post WW I remapping of the Middle East is one interconnected tableau.

[Englander]

7. So, why is it in the i/p forum? n/t

[Coastie for Truth]

9. So, don't complain

[freedum]

8. Dutch man convicted for selling chemical weapons to Saddam

i also heard something on the BBC World news that a Dutch man
was sentenced to 15 years in prison after being convicted by a
Dutch judge for selling chemical weapons to Saddam's regime
(brokering the sale, i think it was). the court found him an
accomplice to the genocide.