Weapons discovered next to medicine in children's clinic

The Scotsman ^ | March 29, 2003 | GETHIN CHAMBERLAIN

[MadIvan]

BRITISH troops in the town of Az Zubayr have found a children’s health centre that has been taken over by the Iraqi militia and converted into an armoury.

Enough children’s medicine for 10,000 treatments was found unopened next to rooms packed with rocket-propelled grenades, AK47 rifles and ammunition.

British commanders were tipped off that the clinic had been taken over by Baath Party and militiamen. Troops stormed the building after armed men were seen leaving yesterday morning.

Militiamen have launched a series of attacks on British soldiers in the town, and it is thought Thursday’s assault on a site used to distribute humanitarian aid was launched from the clinic.

Intelligence suggests an al-Qaeda cell might be operating in the town, and yesterday one prisoner told British officers suicide attacks were being planned on aid convoys. Troops have also been warned militiamen are targeting tank and Warrior commanders by stretching cheesewire across streets at head height.

Lieutenant Colonel Kevin Beaton, senior medical officer for the British battle group, said the clinic contained medical equipment and hundreds of unopened boxes of medicine. He said: "There are kids with chest infections and thread worms that need this stuff now. I think it is a crime it has just been sitting here."

The entrance to the centre was guarded by slit trenches and a 30mm anti-aircraft gun on the roof. Inside, weapons were found in rooms next door to medicines, some of them marked "United Nations IRAQ account".

Corridors to the rear of the building, containing medical equipment and abandoned treatment rooms, had been bricked up but British troops smashed through. Aid agency posters were on the walls of consulting rooms and children’s medical records were piled up on shelves.

Major Douggie Hay, whose men found the clinic, said: "We reckon this was some sort of UNICEF distribution point or health clinic. If that is true, the storage of weapons is a breach of the Geneva convention."

[MadIvan]

The Iraqi regime are a bunch of pigs.

Regards, Ivan

[MadIvan]

Bump!

[bybybill]

Do the French know about this?

[kimmie7]

Agreed.

[hoosiermama]

Thanks for the post.

[Ligeia]

MSNBC's getting ready to show footage of the clinic. Wouldn't using a health facility in this manner be considered a war crime?

[Desdemona]

This is getting ridiculous. How much evidence is it going to take for France and company to believe it? So many international accords are being broken it's unreal.

[Illbay]

Do the French CARE about this?

[D-fendr]

In addition to changing a clinic from a protected site to a military target, the Iraqi's action give lie to the "sanctions killing children" propaganda so liked by the left.

[tessalu]

USA will have to learn the hard way that there is nothing holy in Iraq, not hospitals, not schools, not mosques, not anything. Every place is suspect, and even that woman in the black burka may be an Iraqi soldier, and that child with the gun may kill you if given a chance.

[Kay Soze]

What is more news worthy to CNN, NY Times, ABC News, NBC News, Washington Post, LA Times? :

This find that needed medicines are not getting to children.

That Saddam Sarandon would hide weapons in a clinic

That an innocent Iraqi dog may have been run over a British tank during sever sandstorm.

[Happygal]

and yesterday one prisoner told British officers suicide attacks were being planned on aid convoys.

So what do you do here? Stop the aid convoys?

What about air-dropping aid?

[Starrgaizr]

It's beginning to sound like we can vanquish the Iraqi's most easily simply by bombing all mosques, hospitals, and schools. This is like a mutating bacteria trying to become antibiotic resistent.

[Odyssey-x]

I was thinking today that Saddam Hussein is using all our sacred cows against us. He is putting weapons inside of children's clinics, etc, etc. So let's use some of his sacred cows or rather pigs against him.

Now here's my improbable idea, probably something I wouldn't even try if I were a general-- but at least it makes a great mental picture-- Why not air drop thousands of wild boars into downtown Baghdad. Have them run around and defecate all over the place and cause general mayhem. It will create massive pandemonium without even bombing because Islam says you become a degenerate if you consume swine. Hmm... Now that would truely be unconventional warfare.

Here's some more weird stuff about islam and pork (Just to make this article a little more substantiated).

http://www.jamiat.org.za/al-jamiat/ipork.html

The life of a man is a compound of body and soul. Anything, which is harmful for the body, hurts the soul as well. Consumption of swine-flesh reduces the feeling of shame and as such the standard of modesty. Those nations, which consume pork habitually, have a low standard of morality with the result that virginity, chastity and bashfulness are becoming a thing of the past in Europe today. The number of unwed mothers is on the increase despite the use of pills and other contraceptives.

[cookcounty]

Do you think Al-jazeera will ask the Iraqi leadership about this?----NOT!

[B4Ranch]

ping

[TheSpottedOwl]

Well we knew Saddam didn't give a crap about his own people, and this just underscores it. Wonder what Michael Moore has to say about this. Paging Sean Penn....

[TheSpottedOwl]

I was thinking today that Saddam Hussein is using all our sacred cows against us. He is putting weapons inside of children's clinics, etc, etc. So let's use some of his sacred cows or rather pigs against him.

Hey why not? There's gonna be some logistic problems though. How to transport vicious animals for one. Couldn't you see their faces if they saw a cattle drive of pigs coming at them? Lol, I think we've both had too much beer :)