On The Way To My First Pilgrimage to Manzanar

This Saturday, April 26, 2008, I will be making my own first pilgrimage to Manzanar. It's not the first time I have been to this concentration camp, the first time was five years ago in the summer time on a family trip up to Mammoth. That year my daughter had for her summer reading assignment, "Farewell to Manzanar". So we drove in to the park, which for all but one other car of people there, was empty. My daughter who was only 13 couldn't understand what was there, because in fact, there isn't much there at all. Only a small stone sentry building at the opening , the concrete slabs where the barracks once stood, a white stone obolisque monument, the cemetery, and at the time, the small museum was under construction.

In the background one looks up to majestic Mount Whitney, but to look out and around, it is only desolation. It was blazing hot that August day, with a hot wind blowing. Miles from no where, with the ghosts of memories of people I didn't know hanging in the air.

Now five years later I am going on the annual pilgrimage to Manzanar with my Japanese American friends from NCRR LA, who fought for and won, reparations and and official apology from the US government for the wrongs done to them by interring them in concentration camps during WW11 SOLELY based upon their race (Read: Civil Liberties Act of 1988)

In the two years since I began working with NCRR LA on Ehren Watada's support campaign, I have learned what a lifetime of 51 years prior I had never known. It's not that I didn't know the basic history, but I certainly didn't know the depth and conviction of the Japanese American struggle.

Someone reading here might not understand and wonder why tears are welling in my eyes as I write. The tears are because I didn't know. Because I didn't know any internees personally, and I certainly didn't know what it took to legally overturn what had been done to them by our government. I just simply did not know.

I didn't know that a young Mexican American boy, Frank Lazzo, chose to go to camp with his friends and that when the camp personnel recognized he was not Japanese and told him he could leave, he chose not to. When he graduated from Manzanar high school, he was drafted into the military. Later, he became active in the movement to win reparations for Japanese Americans.

I didn't know this.

And I also didn't know up til getting to know them that their own history has made them come to the forefront of fighting for and protecting the civil rights of Arab/Muslims living in America.

It began a few days after 911, when Kathy Masaoka, co-chair of NCRR (with June Hibino) heard a Muslim woman call in to a radio station. The woman said she was afraid to leave her house, she had heard that the government was planning and implementing mass arrests of Arabs and Muslims here. It was at that point in time, as Kathy stated in February at Day of Remembrance (commemorating the signing of Executive Order 9066), that she realized this was exactly what had occurred to the Japanese after Pearl Harbor, the mortal fear of reprisals against them, and that those fears had become reality. She called other members of NCRR and they set up a new committee, the 911 committee, with the express purpose of reaching out to the Arab and Muslim community. That was five and a half years ago, and their relationship has grown stronger in solidarity since then. Just in October, when the LAPD announced they planned to map Muslims in Los Angeles county, NCRR was there with CAIR, MPAC and the Shura council to fight this unconstitutional plan.

In October of last year, I had the honor and pleasure of attending the annual CAIR banquet with NCRR at which Nobuko Miyomoto read a passage from the memoirs of Yuri Kochiyama, an internment survivor who went on to become a Muslim and actually was at the side of Malcom X when he was assassinated and held him in her arms. (watch the video of the reading that evening HERE)

Sitting next to me at the table that evening was Aiko Yoshinaga-Herzig. born in 1925 in Los Angeles, who was only 17 years old when she was imprisoned at Manzanar. Later, she was incarcerated at Jerome andRowher, Arkansas. Aiko was not trained to be an archives researcher, but through her quest to learn more about her own family's internment, through the Freedom of Information Act, unearthed the government documents which proved that interring the Japanese during WW11 was not a military necessity, and that the government had withheld evidence in Korematsu vs. US, The Court denied that it was reaching the question of whether internment was constitutional. However, the bottom line was that the internment itself passed constitutional muster, since Mr. Korematsu was not allowed to be anywhere on Earth except within a Relocation Center. (See Clinton's intern apology.)

In 1983, with the help of Aiko's research, Japanese Americans successfully sued the United States: From THIS website:

On Jan. 19, 1983, the attorneys filed a writ of coram nobis--the legal term for "fundamental error" committed before the court--in San Francisco federal court. Korematsu's legal team argued that the government committed fraud in prosecuting Korematsu in 1942 because there was no military necessity to place Japanese Americans in internment camps, and this evidence was intentionally altered and suppressed by the Justice Department in the original case to justify convictions. (The Justice Department allowed the Supreme Court to rely on information in the "Final Report, Japanese Evacuation from the West Coast" (1942), prepared by General DeWitt, in deciding the case, although it had reliable evidence from the FCC, Department of the Navy, and Justice that contradicted DeWitt ). Though the petition itself was short, the evidence that Irons had discovered was attached as exhibits.

After lengthy delays, the Justice Department did not respond to the merits of the petition, and instead offered a pardon. Koretmatsu said, "Pardon us? We should be pardoning the government." Korematsu refused.

Judge Marilyn Hall Patel asked the government to either oppose or accept the petition. Internally, the justice department could not come to a decision, and refused to do either.

On November 10, 1983, Judge Patel ruled from the bench: she granted the motion to vacate conviction and overturn indictment of Fred T. Korematsu (more than 40 years after his arrest). The government did not appeal the decision.

In her written decision, Patel wrote:

Korematsu remains on the pages of our legal and political history. As a legal precedent it is now recognized as having very limited application. As historical precedent it stands as a constant caution that in times of war or declared military necessity our instituions must be vigilant in protecting constitutional guarantees. It stands as a caution that in times of distress the shield of military necessity and national security must not be used to protect governmental actions from close scrutiny and accountability. It stands as a caution that in times of international hostility and antagonisms our institutions, legislative, executive and judicial, must be prepared to exercise their authority to protect all citizens from the petty fears and prejudices that are so easily aroused.

In her opinion, Patel attached as Appendices the Justice department memoranda from 1944 which note that erroneous information is being provided to the Court. So Patel's ruling damages the Koretmatsu decision, which legal scholars generally see as an anachronism of racial hysteria anyway. The original decision is discussed in law schools across America as a landmark case (can you qualify due process and equal protection in wartime circumstances?). In 1988, Congress formally apologized and offered reparations to the families of internees, in the 1988 Civil Liberties Act. In 1998, President Clinton awards Fred Korematsu the Presidential Medal of Freedom.

Aiko was there at the CAIR benefit, SPUNKY as can be, and wanting all those around her to know, that at 82 she stands in SOLIDARITY with Arabs and Muslims in America.

Now it is time for the 39th annual pilgrimage to Manzanar, which has been taking place since a 150 Japanese Americans in 1969 decided they wanted to and needed to search their heritage, to go back to that time in history so that they could understand where they were some 25 years later. They needed to see for themselves, and they needed to bring it to the surface of their consciences from which it had been submerged.

38 years later, the pilgrimage event is held annually on the last Saturday of April with hundreds of visitors of all ages and backgrounds, including some former prisoners, gathering at the Manzanar cemetery to remember the internment and to learn about it in the hope that what is generally accepted to be a tragic chapter in American history is neither forgotten nor repeated.

This year however, is quite different, because since last year when several members of CAIR made the pilgrimage (read HERE about their trip last year) CAIR and NCRR have been working together in solidarity to make this years pilgrimage a most memorable one. A series of educational talks have been presented by NCRR at Southern California mosques all leading up to 80 members of CAIR making the pilgrimage this year. At the first planning meeting NCRR was told CAIR didn't quite know how many to expect, but had reserved 20 rooms and a bus to carry 50 people up. The response has been so overwhelming, that rooms had to be shuffled and vans added to accomodate all those wanting to go.

Also, two dear friends of mine who are reporters for Washington Report are going up to cover the story for the magazine. (a good reason to get your subscription now:) so you can read the story when it comes out in the next edition)

So this weekend, on my own personal first pilgrimage to Manzanar, words cannot begin to express the feeling in my own heart how I am looking forward to a weekend of solidarity.

These for all of you reading here, are Americans of HONOR and INTEGRITY.

We are all on a pilgrimage in life to learn from each other.

Never again shall anyone in America be targeted or interned solely based upon their race, religion or nationality.

Never again.

"Pilgrimage" trailer:

Another Spy for Israel Arrested in the US

NEW JERSEY (WABC) -- A U.S. Army mechanical engineer has been arrested on charges that he slipped classified documents about nuclear weapons to an employee of the Israeli Consulate.

Ben-ami Kadish was scheduled to appear in U.S. District Court in Manhattan, where he was facing four counts of conspiracy, including allegations that he conspired to disclose U.S. national defense documents to Israel and that he acted as an agent of the Israeli government.

A criminal complaint said the activities occurred from 1979 through 1985 while Kadish worked at the U.S. Army's Armament Research, Development and Engineering Center in Dover, N.J.

Kadish, a U.S. citizen, was accused of taking home classified documents several times and letting the Israeli government worker photograph them in Kadish's basement.

The documents included information about nuclear weapons, a modified version of an F-15 fighter jet, and the U.S. Patriot missile air defense system, the complaint said.

According to the complaint, the Israeli government worker on numerous occasions between 1979 and 1985 provided Kadish with lists of U.S. national defense classified documents for Kadish to obtain.

Prosecutors also brought conspiracy charges against Kadish alleging that he conspired to hinder a communication with a law enforcement officer and conspired to make a materially false statement to a law enforcement officer.

Those charges stem from a March 20 conversation in which Kadish was told by the Israeli contact to lie to U.S. law enforcement agents, the complaint said.

A day later, Kadish lied to FBI agents about his communications with the Israeli worker, the complaint said.

Kadish was described in the complaint as a Connecticut-born man employed from October 1963 to January 1990 as a mechanical engineer at the Army's Picatinny Arsenal in Dover, where the research center is based.

The complaint said the Israeli worker, who was not identified in court papers, was born in Israel and is an Israeli citizen.

__________________________

(Wrong, according to THIS account, and as stated below,the information which Kadish passed was passed to the same Israeli embassy worker that Jonathan Pollard passed his information to,

"The complaint said the Israeli worker, whose name was not given, is an Israeli citizen. It said that in the late 1970s, he was employed at Israeli Aircraft Industries in Israel, a defense manufacturing contractor for the Israeli government.

From July 1980 through November 1985, he was the consul for science affairs at the Israeli Consulate General in Manhattan, the complaint said."

The name of the consul for science affairs at the Israeli Consulate at that time that Pollard passed his illegally begotten information to is Yosef Yagur (corrected from Ilan Ravid who was the science attache) which can be found in this report from the New York Times article, "Three Told to Shun Pollard and also in THIS report from Haartz published September 22, 2006)
________________________
Continued from above

It said that in the late 1970s, the Israeli worker was employed at the Israeli Aircraft Industries in Israel, which since at least the late 1970s has been a defense manufacturing contractor for the Israeli government.

From July 1980 through November 1985, he lived in the Riverdale section of the Bronx and worked for the government of Israel as the consul for science affairs at the Israeli Consulate General in Manhattan, the complaint said.

The complaint noted that Pollard was charged in November 1985 with espionage-related offense after he provided classified information to the same Israeli worker, among other people.

The Israeli worker left the United States in November 1985 and has not returned, the complaint said.

Pollard, a former civilian intelligence analyst for the U.S. Navy, pleaded guilty when he was standing trial for transferring military secrets to Israel while working at the Pentagon. He is serving a life sentence in a U.S. federal prison. Stay with Eyewitness News and 7online.com for additional information on this still breaking story.

Source

This man, Ben-ami Kadish, invented the following weapon! It was invented privately and assigned for use by the US military
Did he share this information also I wonder.

Title:

Target sensing device

Document Type and Number:

United States Patent 4063513

Link to this page:

http://www.freepatentsonline.com/4063513.html

Abstract:

A plurality of radio frequency shielded electrical break wire sensors for a issile fuze circuit are peripherally positioned on the circumferential outer surface of a warhead body. A first wire sensor provides an electrical indication of contact of the warhead outer surface with a target structure and initiation of the fuze electronics in response thereto. A second printed wire sensor is operatively positioned underneath the first sensor to provide an electrical indication of an impending break-up of the warhead body structure and initiation of the missile fuze.

Inventors:

Kadish, Ben-ami (Clifton, NJ)
Parker, David I. (Grabill, IN)

Application Number:

05/725803

Filing Date:

09/23/1976

Publication Date:

12/20/1977

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Referenced by:

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Export Citation:

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Assignee:

Army US.

Primary Class:

102/206

International Classes:

F42C19/07; F42C19/00; F42C19/02

Field of Search:

102/70.2R

US Patent References:

3717098	February, 1973	Davis et al.	102/70.2R
3903805	September, 1975	Hovnanian	102/70.2R	Impact fuze

Primary Examiner:

Jordan, Charles T.

Attorney, Agent or Firm:

Edelberg, Nathan
Erkkila, Victor A.
Yarmovsky, Max

Claims:

Having thus fully described the invention, what is claimed as new and desired to be secured by Letters Patent of the United States is:

1. A target sensing device for initiating the warhead of a projectile which comprises:

a warhead body section having a pair of peripheral band surfaces thereon, an annular groove disposed intermediate said pair of band surfaces, and a longitudinal slot disposed through one of said pair of band surfaces and communicating with said annular groove;

a fluorocarbon coating disposed on said pair of band surfaces;

a hard target impact sensor means, fixedly disposed in said annular groove and in said longitudinal slot, for indicating breakup of said warhead body when said warhead body penetrates a target;

a target contact sensor means, operatively disposed on said fluorocarbon coating and partially covering said hard target impact sensor means, for indicating contact with said target; and

shield means fixedly disposed over said target contact sensor means and said hard target impact sensor means for isolating said target contact sensor means and said hard target impact sensor means from radio frequency radiations.

2. A target sensing device as recited in claim 1 wherein said fluorocarbons coating comprises a substrate layer being 0.002 of an inch thick.

3. A target sensing device as recited in claim 1 wherein said hard target impact sensor means comprises

a flexible printed break wire circuit disposed on an insulator layer member, said insulator layer member having a pressure sensitive adhesive back thereon for adhering to the base of said annular groove of said warhead body section, said break wire circuit including;

a printed circuit shield loop disposed on said insulator layer member circumambient said printed break wire circuit for shielding said hard target impact sensor from electrical radiations and leakage current;

an epoxy resin material disposed intermediate said break wire circuit and said target contact sensor means, said epoxy resin material fracturing, when said warhead body deforms due to an impact with said target, causing said printed break wire circuit to tear away from said insulated layer member and causing an electrical discontinuity therein which initiates the warhead of said projectile; and

an electrically conductive coating spot disposed on said printed circuit shield loop and said warhead body electrically grounding said shield loop to said warhead body.

4. A target sensing device as recited in claim 1 wherein said target contact sensor means comprises:

an annular aluminum foil electro-magnetic shield, having an adhesive on an interior surface of said annular foil electro-magnetic shield, disposed on top of said fluorocarbon coating and said hard target impact sensor means; and

bifilar wound magnet wire disposed intermediate said fluorocarbon coating and said hard target impact sensor means, fixedly attached by said adhesive to said interior surface of said annular foil electro-magnetic shield, said magnet wire and foil electro-magnetic shield sliding along said fluorocarbon coating and breaking when said foil electro-magnetic shield contacts said target, wherein the breaking of the magnet wire causes an electrical discontinuity which starts the initiation of the warhead of said projectile.

Description:

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a partial cutaway cross-sectional view of the target sensing device located on a warhead body.

FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view taken along line 2--2 of FIG. 1.

Throughout the following description like reference numerals are used to denote like parts of the drawings.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

Referring now to FIGS. 1 and 2 the first break wire mechanism comprises a target sensing magnet wire member 10 circumferentially disposed as a bifilar winding around a warhead body section 12 of a projectile 13. Warhead body 12 has a 0.002 of an inch thick substrate of fluorocarbon coating 14 and 14' applied to a pair of peripheral band surfaces 16 and 16' respectively prior to the winding of target contact sensing break wire 10 thereon. The purpose of the fluorocarbon coating 14 and 14' is twofold. The first purpose is to provide additional insulation between the magnet wire 10, that serves as a target sensing element, and the warhead body 12. The second function of coating 14 and 14' is to limit adhesion of the magnet wire 10 and an overlaying 0.00025 inch thick aluminum foil shield 18 to the warhead body 12 through the fluorocarbon characteristic of very poor adhesive property. The poor adhesion facilitates breakage of the wire pattern 10 when the warhead is abraded by contact with a target. An adhesive 20 is spread on the interior surface of annular aluminum foil electromagnetic shield 18, prior to the installation of the target sensing magnet wire 10, to help hold the foil shield 18 to the magnet wire 10. The magnet wire 10 is assembled to the outer surface of the warhead 12 in a pattern configured to minimize the magnet wire 10 acting as an antenna for picking up radio frequency energy. The magnet wire 10 is insulated from the warhead body 12 and from the aluminum foil shield by a thin lacquered coating, not shown, thereon. The purpose of the aluminum foil shield 18 is to electrically isolate or minimize the effects of radio frequency radiations which can induce electric currents in the wire pattern sensors. Wire leads 22 and 24, which pass through the warhead body 12 and make electrical connection to the missile fuze are soldered to printed wire terminals 26 and 28 and target sensing magnet wire ends 30 and 32 respectively.

A second break wire mechanism, hard target sensor 34, having a pressure sensitive adhesive back 36, is disposed in an annular machined groove 38 and is positioned intermediate the peripheral band surfaces 16, 16' and in longitudinal slot 40 which communicates with band surface 16'. The hard target sensor 34 comprises a printed break wire circuit 42 having terminals 26 and 44 connected to the fuzing circuit, not shown, by leads 22 and 46 respectively. A printed circuit shield loop 48 helps to isolate the hard target electrical circuit 42 from electrical radiations and/or leakage currents. The flexible printed circuit 34 is covered with a layer of hard, insulating and brittle epoxy resin material 50. An electrically conductive coating spot 52 is used to fixedly ground shield loop 48 to the warhead body 12 on the interior side.

In operation the missile fuze electronics (not shown) which is connected to leads 22, 24 and 46 provides a low level of current that continually passes through the target sensor wire pattern 10 and through the hard target sensor printed break wire pattern 42. As the warhead body 12 contacts a target, the aluminum foil shield 18 and the magnet wire pattern 10 are abraded by the target, breaking the magnet wire 10, which is sensed by the fuze electronics as a discontinuance of current flow. Logic circuitry, not shown, within the fuze interprets the current discontinuance as a target encounter and provides a firing pulse to a fuze detonator, not shown, causing the warhead to explode. The fuze circuitry also provides a slight delay in time to allow the warhead to penetrate into the target before detonating the warhead. Under these latter conditions, as the warhead deforms the expoxy layer 50, installed over the printed circuit hard target sensor 34, fractures and begins to separate from the hard target sensor 34 assembly. As the epoxy layer 50 separates, it tears the printed circuit break wire 42 away from the insulator layer member 54 upon which the break wire electrical circuit 42 and 48 is printed, thereby causing an additional electrical discontinuity in the circuit. This latter electrical discontinuity in the fuzing circuit is interpreted by the fuze electronics as an indication of warhead breakup. At this point, the fuze electronics provides an immediate firing signal to the fuze detonator to detonate the warhead while a good degree of warhead structural integrity remains.

In the present embodiment, the hard target sensor 34 is installed on the machined warhead, and the target sensing switch member is installed over the hard target sensor. However, either sensor could be applied to any portion of the warhead, together or separately. The positions chosen for the sensors in the present embodiment have been selected to take maximum advantage of the warhead structure and the most probable encounter conditions with the target.

While there has been described and illustrated specific embodiments of the invention, it will be obvious that various changes, modifications and additions can be made herein without departing from the field of the invention which should be limited only by the scope of the appended claims.

Source

HERE you can read all about this man celebrating a lovely holiday on his patio

"Ben-Ami grew up in what was then Palestine and fought with the Hagana, the underground military organization that operated in Eretz Yisrael from 1920 to 1948. He also served in both the British and American military during World War II and is an ex-commander of the Jewish War Veterans Post 609 in Monroe. The couple is also active in the Jewish Federation of Greater Middlesex County.
_________________________________________________________________

OK it says he grew up in then Palestine (for all you Zionists reading here, do you notice what present day Israel is called?) But his US Military records which can be found HERE read that he was born in Connecticut. Please note that it is recorded that he went on to become an officer in the US Army. I personally have no idea how to read this with all the blanks, but this is his US army record and it clearly states it is for those who enlisted between 1938-1946. Then he went to fight in Israel in the Hagana? And he was also in the British military? This guy sure got around!

File Unit: Electronic Army Serial Number Merged File, ca. 1938 - 1946 (Enlistment Records)
in the Series: World War II Army Enlistment Records, created 6/1/2002 - 9/30/2002, documenting the period ca. 1938 - 1946. - Record Group 64 (info)

ARMY SERIAL NUMBER 10675580 10675580 NAME KADISH#BENAMI########### KADISH#BENAMI########### RESIDENCE: STATE 01 U.S. AT LARGE RESIDENCE: COUNTY 000 NO COUNTIES SHOWN PLACE OF ENLISTMENT 0517 Undefined Code DATE OF ENLISTMENT DAY 08 08 DATE OF ENLISTMENT MONTH 08 08 DATE OF ENLISTMENT YEAR 43 43 GRADE: ALPHA DESIGNATION PVT# Private GRADE: CODE 8 Private BRANCH: ALPHA DESIGNATION NO# No branch assignment BRANCH: CODE 02 No branch assignment FIELD USE AS DESIRED # # TERM OF ENLISTMENT 5 Enlistment for the duration of the War or other emergency, plus six months, subject to the discretion of the President or otherwise according to law LONGEVITY ### ### SOURCE OF ARMY PERSONNEL 0 Civil Life NATIVITY 11 CONNECTICUT YEAR OF BIRTH 23 23 RACE AND CITIZENSHIP 1 White, citizen EDUCATION 4 4 years of high school CIVILIAN OCCUPATION 992 Undefined Code MARITAL STATUS 6 Single, without dependents COMPONENT OF THE ARMY 6 Army of the United States - includes the following: Voluntary enlistments effective December 8, 1941 and thereafter; One year enlistments of National Guardsman whose State enlistment expires while in the Federal Service; Officers appointed in the Army of the United States under Army Regulations 605-10 CARD NUMBER # # BOX NUMBER 0056 0056 FILM REEL NUMBER 1.49# 1.49#

Read the Department of Justice release on this HERE which gives more detail on what information he is said to have handed over to the Israelis. CC1 who is referred to as the un-named Israeli conspirator, is, as stated above, Yosef Yagur (corrected from Ilan Ravid who was the science attache).

UPDATE: From UPI

"Now retired, Kadish and his wife live in Middlesex County in New Jersey, the New Jersey Jewish News said. Kadish was born in Connecticut but grew up in Palestine before the creation of the state of Israel and served in the Haganah, the military force organized by Palestinian Jews."

"Bush's War on the Rule of Law" (Video)

Professor Cohn, the president of the National Lawyers Guild, explains how the Bush administration has used the "war on terror" as an excuse for the illegal invasion of other countries. This is a lecture she recently gave, it is vital to listen to, because she also speaks about survailance of American dissenters to the administration's policies.

Part One:





Part Two:






The following speech was given by Marjorie Cohn in defense of First Lieutenant Ehren Watada who refused to deploy to the illegal war in Iraq. Ehren is also in legal limbo after a federal judge issued a preliminary injunction barring a new court martial after his first trial ended in mistrial. Ehren has NOT been allowed to leave the military, and his supporters need the public to know that Ehren's due process is being violated. Read about it HERE

First Officer Publicly Resists War
By Marjorie Cohn
t r u t h o u t Perspective

Thursday 08 June 2006

Yesterday, US Army First Lieutenant Ehren Watada became the first officer to publicly state his refusal to obey an order to deploy to Iraq. Lieutenant Watada said at a press conference in Tacoma, Washington, "The war in Iraq is in fact illegal. It is my obligation and my duty to refuse any orders to participate in this war." He stated, "An order to take part in an illegal war is unlawful in itself. So my obligation is not to follow the order to go to Iraq."

Citing "deception and manipulation … and willful misconduct by the highest levels of my chain of command," Lt. Watada declared there is "no greater betrayal to the American people" than the Iraq war.

The "turning point" for Lt. Watada came when he "saw the pain and suffering of so many soldiers and their families, and innocent Iraqis." He said, "I best serve my soldiers by speaking out against unlawful orders of the highest levels of my chain of command, and making sure our leaders are held accountable." Lt. Watada felt he "had the obligation to step up and do whatever it takes," even if that means facing court-martial and imprisonment.

Lt. Watada asked me to speak about the legality of the war at his press conference.

I cited the Nuremberg Charter, which set forth the three most serious crimes: crimes against the peace, war crimes, and crimes against humanity. The US Army Field Manual 27-10, art. 28, incorporates the prohibition against these three crimes. The United States is committing a crime against the peace, war crimes, and crimes against humanity in Iraq.

The United States Is Committing a Crime Against the Peace in Iraq

The Nuremberg Tribunal called the waging of aggressive war "essentially an evil thing ... to initiate a war of aggression ... is not only an international crime; it is the supreme international crime differing only from other war crimes in that it contains within itself the accumulated evil of the whole."

A war of aggression, prosecuted in violation of international treaties, is a crime against the peace. The war in Iraq violates the Charter of the United Nations, which prohibits the use of force. There are only two exceptions to that prohibition: self-defense and approval by the Security Council. A pre-emptive or preventive war is not allowed under the Charter.

Bush's war in Iraq was not undertaken in self-defense. Iraq had not attacked the US, or any other country, for 12 years. And Saddam Hussein's military capability had been effectively neutered by the Gulf War, 12 years of punishing sanctions, and nearly daily bombing by the US and UK over the "no-fly-zones."

Bush tried mightily to get the Security Council to sanction his war on Iraq. But the Council refused to give its stamp of approval. Bush then cobbled together prior Council resolutions, none of which, individually or collectively, authorized the use of force in Iraq. Although Bush claimed to be enforcing Security Council resolutions, the Charter empowers only the Council to enforce its resolutions.

Moreover, the Constitution gives only Congress, not the President, the authority to declare war. Congress cannot delegate that authority to the President. Even if Congress could delegate the war power to the President, it cannot authorize the President to execute an aggressive war.

The United States Is Committing War Crimes in Iraq

Violations of the laws of war, memorialized in the Hague and Geneva Conventions, constitute war crimes.

All four Geneva Conventions have the same article 3, frequently referred to as Article 3 Common. Its terms apply to everyone, not just prisoners of war. It prohibits violence to life and person, murder, mutilation, cruel treatment, torture, and outrages upon personal dignity, particularly humiliating and degrading treatment. These prohibitions are memorialized in the Army Field Manual 27-10, art. 506. The Pentagon is trying to remove Article 3 Common from the newly revised instructions that go with the Manual. The implication is that the Defense Department intends to treat prisoners inhumanely.

Grave breaches of the Geneva Conventions constitute war crimes, for which individuals can be punished under the US War Crimes Act. Willful killing, torture or inhuman treatment, and willfully causing great suffering or great bodily harm are grave breaches.

The torture and inhuman treatment of prisoners in US custody at Abu Ghraib and elsewhere in Iraq are grave breaches of Geneva, and therefore, war crimes. The execution of unarmed civilians at Haditha and in other Iraqi cities are war crimes.

Commanders in the chain of command, all the way up to the commander in chief, can be prosecuted for war crimes if they knew or should have known their inferiors were committing war crimes and failed to stop or prevent them. However, it is unlikely that Attorney General Alberto Gonzales will charge Bush, Cheney or Rumseld with war crimes.

The United States Is Committing Crimes Against Humanity in Iraq

Inhumane acts against a civilian population are crimes against humanity and violate the Fourth Geneva Convention. The targeting of civilians and failure to protect civilians and civilian objects are crimes against humanity.

The dropping of 2,000-pound bombs in residential areas of Baghdad during "Shock and Awe" were crimes against humanity. The indiscriminate US attack on Fallujah, which was collective punishment in retaliation for the killing of four Blackwater mercenaries, was a crime against humanity. The destruction of hospitals in Fallujah by the US military, its refusal to let doctors treat patients, and shooting into ambulances were crimes against humanity. Declaring Fallujah a "weapons-free" zone, with orders to shoot anything that moved, was a crime against humanity.

Supreme Court Justice Robert Jackson was the chief prosecutor at the Nuremberg Tribunal. He wrote: "No political or economic situation can justify the crime of aggression. If certain acts in violation of treaties are crimes they are crimes whether the United States does them or whether Germany does them, and we are not prepared to lay down a rule of criminal conduct against others which we would not be willing to have invoked against us."

The Uniform Code of Military Justice, in articles 90-92, sets forth the duty of military personnel to obey lawful commands. The Nuremberg Principles, which are part of US law, provide that all military personnel have the obligation not to obey illegal orders. The Army Field Manual 27-10, sec. 609 and UCMJ, art. 92, incorporate this principle. Article 92 says: "A general order or regulation is lawful unless it is contrary to the Constitution, the law of the United States …"
The Bush administration is committing crimes against the peace, war crimes and crimes against humanity in Iraq. Lieutenant Ehren Watada is correct when he says this is an illegal war. I salute his courage.

Israeli Soldiers Break the Silence on the Horrors in Hebron

In the article below, former IOF soldiers from Breaking the Silence, came forward to testify how that in Hebron, one of the hotbeds of radical Jewish settlement activity which is utterly protected by the Israeli government, Palestinians are routinely subjected to violent acts by the IOF.

When Palestinians report this, nothing gets done, because it is the occupying force that is protecting the Jewish settlers who ALSO routinely violently attack the Palestinians there.

Visitors to Hebron aren't even safe from settler abuse. Just this week a German delegation visiting Hebron had to cut their visit short due to settler abuse. The German delegation stated that the IOF forces stationed there did absolutely nothing to intervene to protect them. In other words, the IOF stationed in Hebron is in collusion with the radical settlers, making for an impossible brutal situation for Palestinians as well as anyone else not aligned with them.

Now, in their moral bravery, these former IOF soldiers who served in Hebron have come forth to testify to the abuse. If you are an American citizen, SPEAK UP! Call your congressional representatives or email them with this information and tell them, STOP your support of the brutal apartheid state of Israel!

Testimonies from Hebron: Soldiers choke, beat Palestinians

Soldiers serving in Hebron testify to violent acts unleashed by troops, settlers on Palestinian residents. Four testimonies below

Hanan Greenberg

Published:

04.18.08, 15:56 / Israel News

"Everyone there feels like they are doing something wrong. At least my friends felt they were doing something wrong." This was the opening sentence in a pamphlet over 100 pages long, which tells the stories of dozens of soldiers who have served in Hebron over the last few years.

The pamphlet was published by an organization called Breaking the Silence, and includes horrifying descriptions about the behavior IDF soldiers have adopted towards the Palestinian residents of Hebron, and that of the settlers.

To read the pamphlet in full, click here

Representatives of Breaking the Silence claim that their goal is "to encourage a public debate about the moral price paid by Israeli society as a whole due to the harsh reality faced by young soldiers forced to take control of a civilian population."

According to the organization, all testimonies were investigated fully before being printed and cross-referenced with witnesses' testimonies and archives of other human rights organizations.

One of the organization's activists said that the situation in Hebron has not changed much during recent years, and that Breaking the Silence has been hearing a lot about the "moral deterioration" of the system as a whole and the soldiers subjected to it. He added that Israeli society has a duty to listen to the soldiers and take responsibility for what is being done in its name.

Four testimonies

Metal wire causes loss of hand:

Soldier: "There was one really crazy soldier in my unit, and he loved torture. One time he caused a man to have his hand cut off."

Interviewer: "What happened?"

Soldier: "Just this Arab… The soldier stole a tobacco box from him. "Suddenly the Arab came and yelled, 'thieves, thieves, I saw you.' He got close to the soldier and we tried to keep him away… We didn't know about the stealing.

"The soldier started to beat him, and everyone started pushing… It became a situation where the Arab was being beaten up badly.

"Then the soldier took a metal wire. He was really screwed up. Grabbed the Arab and started to twist it around…"

Palestinian man on knees (Photo: AFP)

Interviewer: "On his hand?"

Soldier: "Yeah, he really twisted it. I tell you, we tried to stop him. 'No, I won't let him go. He lifted a hand on me, he'll be punished.' Around and around… Afterwards we tried to get it off and we couldn't, it actually made a groove in his hand. It was blue. And the guy is yelling, 'I can't feel my hand anymore.'

"I said he would have to have his hand cut off. We even tried to dig with a knife, to get it off, but we couldn't… We told him to go to the hospital. Nothing to do, we couldn't cut the wire off."

Theft:

Soldier: "There was a lot of theft… Once we were at these rich people's house in Hebron. We found a ton of dollar bills in one of the drawers. Insane. The commander said to the two senior guys in the unit, 'Okay, we'll split the money.' They split it. Left a little there and told me, 'If you talk we'll come back and slaughter you.'"

Interviewer: "Was looting normal?"

Soldier: "A little looting was normal. Backgammon and cigarettes, everything… Everything that looked nice we took. Other guys took presents for their girlfriends from stores."

Beating:

Soldier: "We were on a patrol and we saw a guy in a cab that looked like he was hiding something. We stopped the car… There was just an incident of a soldier getting stabbed there or something.

"We found a knife… We asked the guy, 'Why the knife?' and he said, 'It's for my mother, to chop vegetables.' We said, 'what are you, an idiot? Are you kidding? Are you lying?' He really pissed us off. We grabbed him, hit him a little, in the ribs, not the face.

'You're trying to kill us' (Photo: AP)

"Then the rest of the guys on patrol saw the beating. Everyone jumped on him… They beat him up, really beat him up… Hit him with sticks, in the head… And then one started choking him, with two hands. He was 17 or 18 and he started yelling, 'Mama, Baba.' He kept choking him, he was starting to get blue and lose consciousness.

"Suddenly the other guys saw what was happening and started pulling off the soldier. But he wouldn't let go. He wouldn't let go and he yelled, 'You're trying to kill us, you want to kill us, you want to stab me, eh? Son of a bitch, you want to stab me.'

"He was crazy… We pulled him, his legs and stomach. And his whole body was in the air, and we were pulling and pulling… He went at him like a pit-bull. Finally we got him off."

Choking:

Soldier: "We did all kinds of experiments to see who could do the best split in Abu Sneina. We would put them against the wall, make like we were checking them, and ask them to spread their legs. Spread, spread, spread, it was a game to see who could do it best.

"Or we would check who can hold his breath for longest."

Interviewer: "How do you check that?"

"Choke them. One guy would come, make like he was checking them, and suddenly start yelling like they said something and choke them… Block their airways, you have to press the adams apple. It's not pleasant. Look at the watch as you're doing it, until he passes out. The one who takes longest to faint wins."

(Source)

Read also: "Our Reign of Terror, by the Israeli Army" (April 19,2008)

Video: Israeli troops shoot Hebron family - 05 June 07:

Added: June 06, 2007 (Less info)

Officially, the Israelis say their soldiers opened fire only after a group of men assaulted them and tried to grab their weapons. Those who were there say that's a lie.

05 June 2007

The images are as shocking as the story itself. But for those who have lived under these conditions for forty years.....incidents like this no longer come as a surprise

Thieves in uniform

By Gideon Levy

At about midnight, the house was surrounded by soldiers. Mohammed Abu Arkub, a barber, woke up frightened at the sound of loud knocking on the door and the shouts demanding it be opened. Abu Arkub rushed to open the door and the soldiers pulled him outside and ordered him to take all the members of the household outside immediately. His wife Lubna and his two young daughters were sleeping, along with Lubna's two younger sisters, who live with them. He woke them up and ordered them to go outside. His brother, Rami, who lives alone in the adjacent hut, was also called to go outside.

The night of March 19, the village of Wadi al-Shajneh in the South Hebron Hills, south of the town of Dura. The family stood outside for about 10 minutes, half asleep in the cold night air, and then the soldiers ordered them to all go inside Rami's hut. Two soldiers stood at the door, guarding the family so they wouldn't go out. The rest of the soldiers in the force entered the home of the barber and his wife and began to conduct a search. Abu Akrub asked to be present during the search, but the soldiers prevented him from doing so. The routine of the occupation.
The soldiers were followed by female soldiers accompanied by dogs, while the family remained crowded into Rami's room. The search took about an hour and a half. Then the soldiers took everyone out to the yard. Mohammed asked to bring blankets for his young daughters, but the soldiers refused. An Israel Defense Forces commander took Mohammed aside and interrogated him. They were looking for weapons in the house, and the barber told them there were no weapons in the house.

"You're lying," said the officer, but Mohammed said to him: "You searched and you didn't find anything." He says the officer hit him. The family remained outside for about another half an hour, and then they were once again put into Rami's room, and this time the door was closed. Things continued like that until almost 2 A.M.

When Mohammed thought the soldiers had left, he opened the door and went outside. Together with his wife they rushed to their house, which is right next to Rami's, where they had been held. The household items were scattered on the floor. The television and the computer were shattered, as were several kitchen items and vases. Lubna hurried to the box with her gold jewelry, where she keeps the gifts she received from Mohammed for their marriage, four years ago. There is such a box in every Palestinian home. The box was thrown on the floor. Lubna's cheap jewelry was scattered, but the gold jewelry had disappeared. Necklaces and bracelets that had been saved from the wedding - their most important assets - were not found. The family searched and searched and didn't find them.

Mohammed still has the old receipt from the Sharha jewelry shop in Hebron: 200 grams of gold that were purchased at the time at a cost of 23 Jordanian dinars per gram. At the prices then: about NIS 30,000. Rami, a strapping young man who works for a stonecutter, was upset. He wanted to go out and chase the soldiers. Mohammed tried to stop him, but failed. Rami ran down the path toward the four army jeeps that were still parked in the village. "You stole the gold," shouted Rami at the soldiers, and soon a fight developed. Rami sat inside the jeep and said he wouldn't leave until the gold was returned to its owners. He wanted the Civil Administration to be called, but his wish wasn't granted. The soldiers pushed him out and left. They didn't arrest him, as is usual, for the crime of attacking soldiers. Mohammed wrote down the number of one of the jeeps, 252126 that was written on its side, and 4760 on its license plates.

The elder daughter is named Yakut, precious stone in Hebrew. After the soldiers left, Mohammed phoned the Palestinian civil liaison office and asked to file a complaint. There they referred him to the Israeli liaison office. He also turned to the B'Tselem headquarters in Hebron, where he was instructed to submit a complaint to the Kiryat Arba police. After overcoming his fears, he turned to the Kiryat Arba police on March 23. He arrived at police headquarters at 9:30 A.M., but was allowed to enter only after a humiliating five-hour wait.

We were in Hebron that day, and we heard his despairing voice on the phone to B'Tselem investigator Musa Abu Hashhash, repeatedly phoning and asking him to help him get into the police building. "Stand next to the cameras at the entrance, so they'll see you," they advised him. But only at 2:30 P.M. was he allowed to enter.

Police investigator Yaakov Barzani actually apologized for the wait, claimed that he didn't know that Mohammed had been waiting outside, and wrote down the complaint. Mohammed says the investigator was pleasant and told him that the soldiers were ruining the IDF's good name. He also told how he, investigator Barzani, had participated in confiscating millions of shekels from the money-changing offices in Hebron, an operation reported in this column a few weeks ago, and that he didn't touch any of the large amounts of money that passed through his hands.

Finally policeman Barzani gave Mohammed a document: "A confirmation of the filing of a complaint in case 116812/2000." All the sections of the form were filled in block letters, the name of the complainant, the site of the incident, the date, and so on. Only the subject of the complaint remained empty. Not a word on the form about what Mohammed Abu Arkub had complained about. And a remark at the end of the form: "This document should not be considered a confirmation of the truth of the information." What information? Nothing is written. Signed, Hebron District, Investigations.

Spokesman of the Judea and Samaria Police District, Danny Poleg: "In the Judea and Samaria District, we question suspects in their mother tongue. Therefore, in situations when there are many complainants, the waiting time may be slightly longer - due to our intent to provide a quality service to each complainant. In any case, as a result of this complaint, the following day we reviewed the procedures related to waiting time. As for the form given to the complainant, it is computerized and the investigator is unable to add or delete anything. Since the complaint is directed against a soldier, the case was forwarded to the Military Police."

The barber from Wadi al-Shajneh is not alone. In the offices of B'Tselem, about a dozen different accounts have accumulated in recent months, by Palestinians who complained about the theft of gold or cash from their homes in the course of searches conducted by IDF soldiers and in one case, a Shin Bet security service investigator. Ronen Shimoni, data coordination director of B'Tselem, sent several of the accounts to Haaretz: Members of the Zarkat family from Kafr Tapuah; members of the Rehal family from Silat al-Dahr; members of the Antar family from Barqin; Dendis from Halhoul; Demieri from Hawara; Adaili from Beita; Asus from Jenin; and members of the Ziadat family from Bene Naim. They and others complained about the disappearance of jewelry and cash. In some cases a Military Police or police investigation was begun.

Here, for example, is the testimony of Sayel Ziadat, a resident of Bene Naim, which is also in the South Hebron Hills, about what happened in his home on March 5, two weeks before the search in the Abu Arkub home, and the description is strikingly similar:

"I woke up at about 2 A.M. to the sound of stones being thrown at the windows of my house. I understood that these were soldiers. I thought that if I didn't open up maybe they would leave. But 10 minutes later, after several windows had already been shattered, I opened the door and saw five or six soldiers. They ordered me to pick up my shirt and turn around, and then they asked me to take all the members of the household outside. It was cold and I asked to bring blankets for my elderly mother, but the soldiers wouldn't allow it.

"Several soldiers entered the house to conduct a search. I asked to accompany them, but they refused. They handcuffed me behind my back and blindfolded me. For about two hours they searched my house and the nearby home of my brother, and at about 4:30 A.M. the officer came downstairs accompanied by two soldiers, and they were laughing. I was suspicious about their laughter. They were holding my cell phone and an album of family photos. They threw the album and my phone on the floor. They took off the plastic handcuffs. I asked them: 'Why did you handcuff me?' And they replied: 'It's none of your business.' I asked: 'Why did you shatter the windows?' and they replied 'Fix the windows and we'll come to break them for you again.'

"After they left, my wife rushed to gather all the household items that were scattered on the floor and ran straight to the cupboard to look for the jewelry box. The NIS 1,000 in cash and the jewelry of the mohar [wedding contract] that had been there - had disappeared. That's all we had, all our savings. Even when I was in prison and my wife had no source of income, we kept the gold from the wedding." Ziadat also filed a complaint with the police.

We enter the bedroom of the Abu Arkubs in Wadi al-Shajneh. Heavy curtains, a colorful wall-to-wall carpet, glass cases filled with vases and glass objects, a bed and night tables painted in purple lacquer. In the yard the shattered computer and television lie, reduced to junk. Lubna pulls out the treasure box, which has pull-out drawers and mirrors on all sides. The cheap jewelry, which glitters from afar, remained in the box. Only the gold, she says, is gone.

Source

Another War Crime in Israel, the Killing of a Reuter's Cameraman

Yesterday in Gaza, Israel committed yet another war crime against Palestinians in firing a tank shell which riddled the body of the Reuter's camerman Fadel Shana, killing him and wounding three others.

B'Tselem issued a report today claiming that he was killed by a Flachette shell based upon a statement from Gaza's Shifa Hospital. B'tsellem is calling for a full investigation into this horrific event.

In October 2002, Physicians for Human Rights- Israel and the Palestinian Center for Human Rights petitioned the High Court of Justice to forbid the IDF to use flachette shells in the Occupied Territories. The High Court denied the petition.

What exactly is a Flachette? It is a "Magic Bullet" containing depleted uranium which is designed to break through steel. From Time Magazine:

Since the first atomic explosion at Alamogordo, N. Mex., in 1945, uranium has been the key ingredient in nuclear armaments. Now, in a surprising change of role, the heavy metal is showing promise in more conventional weapons. When fired from test guns, tiny uranium projectiles produced by California's TRW Systems and several other companies, have had such devastating effects on targets during recent demonstrations that the Department of Defense has been awarding contracts for further development work.

TRW's magic bullets are unimpressive at first glance. Less than 4 in. long and one-tenth of an inch thick, they resemble the steel flechettes (French for "little arrows") used in some U.S. antipersonnel weapons in Viet Nam. What the TRW flechettes lack in size, they make up in penetration power. In recent tests, they punched completely through a 2-in.-thick armor plate that would stop most steel flechettes or heavy-caliber bullets fired at it.

Dramatic Travel. It is the uranium that gives the flechettes their impressive muscle. Cleansed of its fissionable isotopes U-235, the depleted uranium is safe to handle. Because it is one of the heaviest natural elements (a 1-ft. cube of uranium weighs 1,167 lbs.), even a tiny uranium flechette fired at high velocity from a gun has so much kinetic energy that it can penetrate a target at an angle as oblique as 60°.

When it enters the target, the flechette is stripped of an ablative coating that has protected the uranium from the 1000° F. temperature generated by air friction (solid uranium will ignite at 338° F.) As the bare depleted uranium comes in contact with steel, an exothermic, or heat-producing, effect occurs when the metals react chemically. This instantaneous heating, combined with the searing heat of impact, raises the temperature of the surrounding steel to such a degree that the flechette literally melts its way through, leaving a hole many times its own diameter.

International law protects journalists, or is supposed to. Read the full text of UN Security Council Resolution 1738 HERE.

Read on Al Jazeera "Arms row over cameraman's death"

Here is Fadel speaking in an interview for Al Jazeera on April 8, 2008, just eight days ago. This fatal shooting was not the first time he has been shot and wounded by the IOF





This is Fadel yesterday: (Hat-tip to Desert Peace who borrowed these photos from Philistine who originally posted them)

Al Jazeera reports on his death in the following video














Every single US presidential candidate there is has been falling over in proving their "stalwart support" for Israel, it is HIGH time these candidates be challenged as to this. Israel is a rogue nation which commits war crimes against the Palestinians on a regular basis. Take time today to report this to your elected officials so that PERHAPS our own country can begin to break the stranglehold the Israeli Lobby has on us. The above incident will not be the last, but it is up to us as US citizens to lobby our elected officials on behalf of the Palestinian people. NO MORE SUPPORT for the state of Israel in its' crimes!