[promoted with a very heavy heart- BooMan]
(Cross-Posted at Daily Kos)
(Hat tip to Mark Kraft, an emailer to Eric Alterman’s blog, Altercation for finding this admission by the US Army)
That’s right. Not from Al Jazheera, or Al Arabiya, but the US fucking Army, in their very own publication, from the (WARNING: pdf file) March edition of Field Artillery Magazine in an article entitled “The Fight for Fallujah”:
“WP [i.e., white phosphorus rounds] proved to be an effective and versatile munition. We used it for screening missions at two breeches and, later in the fight, as a potent psychological weapon against the insurgents in trench lines and spider holes when we could not get effects on them with HE. We fired ‘shake and bake’ missions at the insurgents, using WP to flush them out and HE to take them out.”
In other words the claim by the US Government that White Phosphorus was used only for illumination at Fallujah had been pre-emptively debunked by the Army. Indeed, the article goes on to make clear that soldiers would have liked to have saved more WP rounds to use for “lethal missions.”
However, as Mark Kraft, an emailer to Eric Alterman’s blog, Altercation, points out today, the Field Artillery Magazine article fails to inform its audience that
. . . there is no way you can use white phosphorus like that without forming a deadly chemical cloud that kills everything within a tenth of a mile in all directions from where it hits. Obviously, the effect of such deadly clouds weren’t just psychological in nature.
Furthermore, (from a link provided by Mr. Kraft, thank you very much) testimony about the use of these “shake and bake” techniques of WP usage are detailed in an account by an embedded Journalist regarding the April 2004 attacks on Fallujah by the Marines:
Fighting from a distance
After pounding parts of the city for days, many Marines say the recent combat escalated into more than they had planned for, but not more than they could handle.
“It’s a war,” said Cpl. Nicholas Bogert, 22, of Morris, N.Y.
Bogert is a mortar team leader who directed his men to fire round after round of high explosives and white phosphorus charges into the city Friday and Saturday, never knowing what the targets were or what damage the resulting explosions caused.
“We had all this SASO (security and stabilization operations) training back home,” he said. “And then this turns into a real goddamned war.”
Just as his team started to eat a breakfast of packaged rations Saturday, Bogert got a fire mission over the radio.
“Stand by!” he yelled, sending Lance Cpls. Jonathan Alexander and Jonathan Millikin scrambling to their feet.
Shake ‘n’ bake
Joking and rousting each other like boys just seconds before, the men were instantly all business. With fellow Marines between them and their targets, a lot was at stake.
Bogert received coordinates of the target, plotted them on a map and called out the settings for the gun they call “Sarah Lee.”
Millikin, 21, from Reno, Nev., and Alexander, 23, from Wetumpka, Ala., quickly made the adjustments. They are good at what they do.
“Gun up!” Millikin yelled when they finished a few seconds later, grabbing a white phosphorus round from a nearby ammo can and holding it over the tube.
“Fire!” Bogert yelled, as Millikin dropped it.
The boom kicked dust around the pit as they ran through the drill again and again, sending a mixture of burning white phosphorus and high explosives they call “shake ‘n’ bake” into a cluster of buildings where insurgents have been spotted all week.
They say they have never seen what they’ve hit, nor did they talk about it as they dusted off their breakfast and continued their hilarious routine of personal insults and name-calling.
So who you gonna believe? The US Department of Defense or the US Army and the US Marine Corps? Decisions, decisions . . .
Someday, I hope to not automatically believe the worst of my government. But as soon as I saw the first Italian report, I knew it was all true. Hopefully this makes it harder for the administration to lie about it.
The best we have to look forward to is years of war crimes trials now.
is what we don’t know.
It took five years, I’d say, for much detail to come out about our conduct in Gulf War I. Much of that information directly contradicted what we’d been told.
That conflict was an open book compared to the current occupation of Iraq. We will never know many of the evils our soldiers have done at Bush and Cheney and Rumsfeld’s orders. But you can be sure we’re not getting the full story about anything right now.
Shame on the military and shame on the Criminals giving the orders. It is time to stand up and say we are not going to do this anymore. I HATE what they have done to these grunts. They just go back and dust off their breakfast after incinerating people? WTF is wrong with these people?
the best thing I’ve ever read there. It should not need to be said that the point here is burning the skin off children, but sadly it does need to be said. Please read it if you can stand the orange site.
I agree ubikkibu. I just read it. I have been really horrified by the number of posters over there that keep trying to parse the wording being used – chemical weapon vs incendiary device, etc. The diarist you linked – Hunter – gets the message across very well how repugnant he finds that too.
he anticipates all too well the talking points attack we’ll be treated to by the right (and some on the left, apparently) very soon. If we’re “lucky” enough to get the white phosphorus story elevated to the MSM, that is.
The Situation Room on CNN is all over the Jordan attack right now, highlighting Bush’s response to the murdering of innocent people. I wrote and asked them if they would be reporting on his response to the U.S. murdering innocent people with white phosphorus. Of course, I don’t expect an answer. Jordan comes just in time to distract everyone from the white phosphorus story, a stroke of luck for BushCo.
These media idiots just fail to see the irony and double standards on how they report the news.
And Sen. Rockefeller who was just interviewed a few minutes ago about Jordan didn’t help much. At first he seemed to be using the appearance to crticise the White House screw ups of Iraq and I was starting to feel hopeful that he would make some good points.
But unfortunately, Rockefeller quickly got all unfocused and began rambling about “intelligence failure.” I swear these Democrats need some good PR training — how to stay on message and quit losing opportunities to point out this administration’s failures. If this had happened under Clinton and they were interviewing a Repub, you can be sure he would have mentioned Clinton’s failings in the first 30 seconds of the interview, and he would have kept hammering that point until the interview was over.
The world is truly ucked up when people begin coming up with “politically correct” euphemisms for war crimes.
I think I’m on horrification overload. Brought on by my own goddamn country.
Uh, that should be “fucked”; can’t even curses properly.
That has got to be the best ever thing he has ever written!!! It is just great!
I think, just for this very tatic, we as American citizens need to stand firm against this! We are doing exactly what we accused Saddium of and we are proud of this!!!???? God where have we come from and where are we going!!!??? We surely have lost our way!!!!!no matter what………
Holy Crap! Hunter could not have made it any plainer. Jesus, melting skin off of children. I am speechless.
Steven, great catch. I didn’t know you read Army magazines … ?
this needs to get around. Hope you cross-post it.
All thanks to the Altercation emailer who found this. I do read Altercation. Army Mags are a more recent addition.
Sadly.
Raw Story has this too … and they’re presenting it as if it’s their exclusive.
Well it was found first by the Altercation emailer, Mr. Kraft. I only added a little to what he wrote.
how do we subscribe to that list? (as if I need more e-mail, but what the hell …) Do they have a link so that we can credit them for their great discovery>
I’d just link to Alterman’s blog. The email is stuff that comes to him only and he decides whether to publish them on his blog or not.
Can you add the link to Alterman’s blog as the source for your story so that they get credit for breaking this?
Done.
I posted about this the other day and dug up some details on “incendiary” vs. “chemical” and the legalities involved.
http://www.boomantribune.com/story/2005/11/7/172214/852
thanks for posting this – it’s a great find!
My post, after seeing The Heretik’s post (and he posted about it twice in June, too).
Good on you for posting it here and Kos. I should have, but was too tired and wired watching the election returns last night.
Where’s the MSM on this?
Clear and concise description from GlobalSecurity.
We fired ‘shake and bake’ missions at the insurgents, using WP to flush them out and HE to take them out.”
Ya know… Most soldiers know that Shake and Bake is illegal.
Commonly used as a tactic to take out bunkers (First you hit them with HE to weaken their fortified structure, then you hit it with Phosphor Rounds to burn everyone).
I know that our soldiers had been told about that technique as an example of tactic that was deemed illegal. The soldiers that did this should know better than to follow illegal orders.
Our mortar guys made it very clear to us all that the tactic was no longer used because it was illegal.
Heavy heart? I am fucking outraged!
that they often carried and used white phosphorus rounds or devices in Vietnam, and that its use was not uncommon in WWII. Is that true?
It would of course not make this any less immoral, although arguably less criminal. And as I said before, history shows us that something like this is just the tip of the tip of the iceberg.
Like I said… They no longer were allowed to use it. They did “used to do it”, and even some of the soldiers that were in when I was in had “practiced” or used that tactic. BUT they were no longer allowed to use it. Not even on bunkers. Nevermind in a city where the potential of collateral damage is way too high.
ILLEGAL. He has been an Army pilot for 14 years. WP is used as a double round to mark a target for bombing from Air Force Aircraft and that’s about it for helicopters……unless you look at the footage the Italians provided where they blanketed the ground with it!
UK Independent is reporting of new evidence that the US used chemical weapons in Iraq.
Chemical warfare by US forces on Iraqis source:
The result:
To witness more of the result, go to: dahrjamailiraq.com
The use of chemical weapons is amongst most shameful thing that our government could do in our names. For many of us in the pro-peace movement we have already been shocked by this news. We knew that Fullajah was a scene of many horrendous crimes against humanity. Hospitals were bombed as targets early in the raid. Homes with children and families were fire bombed. Air strikes killed the innocent. We can now only hope that more Americans will see what our government is doing in Iraq.
Torture, chemical warfare, crimes against the peace, wars of aggression and other horrendous acts becoming commonplace is insane. For these to enter into political debate as mere possibilities, as considerations, is simply barbaric. I am horrified and angry, ashamed and disappointed.
emailed to every Pentagon correspondent and demanded that they ask Rummy about its contents…
What a disgrace.
Atrocious as this is, is it really any more morally bankrupt than “legally” scattering depleted uranium, clusterbombs and landmines all over the landscape? Spraying defoliants across South America? Napalm? WWII firebombings & nuclear detenations?
This should be a moral issue, not a legalistic one.
This entire war is illegal. And immoral. That’s the problem.
No argument with that.
These images are horrifying. WMD in our names again.
Madeleine Albright, asked about the deaths by malnutrition, disease & lack of medicine of a half-million Iraqi civilians due to UN sanctions, thought the price was “worth it.” Unacknowledged WMD in our names. Which killed more people? Which is more horrific?
The question, of course, is a false one. From a humanitarian view, each life counts, both “means” deserve condemnation.
I find myself bouncing back & forth between being disgusted by the phosphorous story & its pictures, and feeling some dismay that this is somehow something new & exceptional. Novel techne, p’haps, but the intent remains unchanged.
can be trying to hear, but at the same time, opposition to a particular method is a step above applauding the extermination regardless of how it is accomplished.
That is progress, and we can hope it will lead to further thought on the subject by even more people.
of the the Iraqi operations according to the same moral criteria Bush used to justify invading.
It’s the sort of thing that justifies the removal of the leader.
.
Was also a lie to place fear in minds of the British people –
London MI5’s ‘Torture’ Evidence Revealed
¶ Ricin Conspiracy Collapsed
Vital evidence in a terror case that was used by Tony Blair to justify the war with Iraq was withheld by Britain’s top chemical weapons laboratory.
Tests demonstrating that no ricin was found at a flat linked to a gang suspected of planning a poison attack on the London Underground in January 2003 were not disclosed to police and ministers by officials at Porton Down.
“Treason doth never prosper: what’s the reason?
For if it prosper, none dare call it treason.”
▼ ▼ ▼ MY DIARY
here’s another sotry about “Willie Pete”
I found this at emedical –
http://www.emedicine.com/emerg/topic918.htm
That is some truly chilling information. That link should be publicized. I don’t see how the Republicans and the right wing media can deny that this report is true. Maybe some people in the medical community can organize and protest the use of this as a weapon.
Wow, just wow. I am flabberghasted at this new revelation that US troops have been using this.
and please continue. It hurts me too much to dig on it right now.