Iraqi PM executes prisoners?

[Sayhey]

How's this for a recommendation for high office? Small wonder Bush likes him so much; he must remind him of all those tough judges in Texas Westerns. Actually, I think the St. Valentine's Day massacre and Chicago gangsters might be a closer analogy.

Iyad Allawi, the new Prime Minister of Iraq, pulled a pistol and executed as many as six suspected insurgents at a Baghdad police station, just days before Washington handed control of the country to his interim government, according to two people who allege they witnessed the killings.

They say the prisoners - handcuffed and blindfolded - were lined up against a wall in a courtyard adjacent to the maximum-security cell block in which they were held at the Al-Amariyah security centre, in the city's south-western suburbs.

They say Dr Allawi told onlookers the victims had each killed as many as 50 Iraqis and they "deserved worse than death".

The Prime Minister's office has denied the entirety of the witness accounts in a written statement to the Herald, saying Dr Allawi had never visited the centre and he did not carry a gun.

But the informants told the Herald that Dr Allawi shot each young man in the head as about a dozen Iraqi policemen and four Americans from the Prime Minister's personal security team watched in stunned silence.

Sydney Morning Herald (http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2004/07/16/1089694568757.html)

[zimv20]

yeah, but at least that tyrant saddam is no longer in power, right?

[Neserk]

YIKES!

[mactastic]

While I'm not ready to declare him a murderer, I predict many violations of human rights under Allawi. He will be the hammer the Americans never could be because of the outcry of Imperial Agressors. Much like the Central American dictators of the '80s that we dealt with happily as long as they were 'our SOB'. The human rights violations of that time are still reverberating in Central and South America to this day.

[pseudobrit]

yeah, but at least that tyrant saddam is no longer in power, right?

meet the new boss...

[zimv20]

While I'm not ready to declare him a murderer
why not? i think it's entirely appropriate.

and what of the US reaction? this is the last paragraph of the article:

US officials in Iraq have not made an outright denial of the allegations. An emailed response to questions from the Herald to the US ambassador, John Negroponte, said: "If we attempted to refute each [rumour], we would have no time for other business. As far as this embassy's press office is concerned, this case is closed."

[pseudobrit]

I'm waiting for the poll that asks,

"Would you be more or less likely to vote for G.W. Bush if he personally executed Saddam Hussein?"

I bet he'd do it if such a poll came back with a 70% "more" rating.

[zimv20]

i bet he'd do it if he had to resign the next day and face criminal charges

[SPG]

...Much like the Central American dictators of the '80s that we dealt with happily as long as they were 'our SOB'. The human rights violations of that time are still reverberating in Central and South America to this day.

Funny you should mention that as bush has appointed John Negroponte as the ambassador to Iraq, funny as in his resume is written in the blood of the victims of the Honduran death squads he actively shielded as the US ambassador there.

[mactastic]

why not? i think it's entirely appropriate.

Show me more than one source and I'll agree. I meant that on the basis of this one article I'm not ready to call him a murderer. That doesn't mean I'm dismissing this out of hand either, just that I want to see some more evidence before leveling such a serious charge.

and what of the US reaction? this is the last paragraph of the article:

Don't get me started on Negroponte. I am well aware of his lack of regard for huuman rights. Hopefully this will be followed up on and more investigation will be done. But you know rumors can sometimes get blown out of proportion. Remember Kerry's supposed intern affair?

Regardless, I'm not absolving Allowi of anything. I think he's going to be the public face of a very brutal and repressive government. I also think he'll be more than willing to play the puppet for Dubya Inc.

[mischief]

Funny you should mention that as bush has appointed John Negroponte as the ambassador to Iraq, funny as in his resume is written in the blood of the victims of the Honduran death squads he actively shielded as the US ambassador there.

I knew that name was familliar. Dammit! Vote out this fool! We really don't need a cross between Nixon and Reagan in office for nearly a Decade do we?

We can't be too surprised... Iraq is a fairly savage place that's been ruled by-the-sword for a very long time.

[radhak]

Looks like Donald Trump has better foresight than anybody of the US policy makers. The other day he had said,"C'mon. Two minutes after we leave, there's going to be a revolution, and the meanest, toughest, smartest, most vicious guy will take over. And he'll have weapons of mass destruction, which Saddam didn't have".
A regular nostradamus, this Donald...

[zimv20]

I meant that on the basis of this one article I'm not ready to call him a murderer.
then i misunderstood