Iraq War in Pictures

Not all new, but nevertheless interesting to go through. Not exactly National Geographic but in the same spirit. Biased in every direction of course. Images have always born the hardships of armed conflict to the people, but this is really the first time we are facing this mainstream and wide onslaught of graphic ferocity.

Warblogging: Taking the Dover Test

.. an American contractor in Kuwait took photographs of flag-draped coffins in a C-130 that were about to make their way to Dover Air Force Base. Both the contractor and her husband were fired by their employer for taking and distributing the photographs, one of which eventually appeared on the cover of the Seattle Times.

.. hundreds of photographs of American war dead have been released by the United States Air Force in response to a Freedom of Information Act request filed by the Memory Hole.

.. it is believed that photographs 73 and on are of Iraq war casualties.

Rotten.com: Abu Ghraib
Thememoryhole.org: Iraqis Being Abused by US Personnel

When the U.S. came storming into the country in spring of 2003, Abu Ghraib was left a smoldering ruin, looted by the local populace as the Saddam regime disintegrated. The Americans came in and thought to themselves, “Hey, wouldn’t it be great if we used this ghoulish house of horrors for our own prison?” You can almost imagine them thinking to themselves, “Gee, then people will see how much better we are than those lousy Baathists!”

Actually, you need not imagine it. When the prison made its debut as an American institution, Gen. Janis Karpinski came right out and said it. “Living conditions (for the prisoners) now are better in prison than at home. At one point we were concerned that they wouldn’t want to leave,” the general boasted.

And today it was even reported that unfortunate private England did her own share of sexual acts in front of the camera. If people still haven’t grasped the seriousness of the situation this should do the trick. No one can probably understand the hellishness of war unless they have been there. This however, anyone can understand, hell will freeze over before anyone would have sex with that women under anything but bizarre circumstances. It’s a cruel thing to say but it’s true. The entire lives and careers of the people who have now come under scrutiny seem sad at best. And the experience of being uniformed and placed in a autocratic organization such as the US Army, then mauled psychologically by the ordeals of war, obviously didn’t make the situation any better.

Pirate Bay: Nick Berg Execution
Pirate Bay: Nick Berg Execution (short, from Ogrish.com)
Al Bawaba: Pictures of Nick Berg beheading in Iraq - Caution: Very Graphic Violence

US officials said Wednesday that Berg had been warned to leave Iraq, but refused. A US official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said Berg was in Iraq “of his own accord” and had been advised to leave Iraq but refused.

“Al Basrah” Photo Galleries: Iraq Freedom?, USA Terror On Al Falluja, Democracy?.

Brandonblog: Iraq War Photos

Der Spiegel: Iraker in US-Haft zu Tode gefoltert