**8 Japanese Human Shields Ordered to Hotel in Baghdad** ("What's Up The Sleeve?"-Alert)

Kyodo News (via Japan News Today) ^ | 8 April 2003 | Kyodo News (via Japan News Today)

[AmericanInTokyo]

Title: ***Eight Japanese Human Shields Ordered to Hotel in Baghdad***

Monday, April 7, 2003 at 06:22 JST Kyodo News

AMMAN — Eight Japanese human shields at a water-purification plant in Baghdad were ordered by Iraqi authorities to move to a hotel in the center of the city on Friday night, local sources said Sunday.

The eight wanted to remain at the plant but Iraqi authorities would not allow them to do so citing security reasons, the sources said. The plant is located about 10 kilometers south of the center of the city.

The move appears to be intended to keep the human shields away from conflict as substantial U.S. forces supported by tanks and armored vehicles entered the heart of Baghdad on Saturday from the southwestern district near the plant.

It was not immediately known whether the eight, including 31-year-old Yasuyuki Aizawa from Kawagoe, Saitama Prefecture, and 46-year-old Yuichi Sugimoto from Niigata, remained at the hotel Saturday night or returned to the plant, according to the sources.

In Tokyo on Sunday, meanwhile, Senior Vice Foreign Minister Toshimitsu Motegi said 11 Japanese human shields in Baghdad were all safe as of Saturday evening Japan time.

Jamila Takahashi, a civic group representative who is in Iraq, also called a supporter in Japan early Sunday morning, saying the 11 were all safe, the supporter quoted her as saying.

According to the Foreign Ministry, the number of Japanese nationals in Iraq dropped to 37 as of Sunday, as one journalist who was in northern Iraq left.

A ministry official said contacting Japanese nationals in Iraq is becoming more difficult as the ministry is having trouble assessing the local situation. (Kyodo News)

[AmericanInTokyo]

The Iraqi police, Feddayhin, what not, must have unholstered their pistols and delivered the order over protests. Can you imagine the chill through these naive idiots?

There are several ways to read this.

Coupled with other news reports today about fierce fighting around the Rashid Hotel in Baghdad, and if this is the particular hotel the Japanese "shields" have been sent to, then there is perhaps something rather diabolical in the works, IMHO.

Other news reports have wondered what it is the Iraqis are hiding at the Rashid Hotel, due to the fierce fighting.

The naive reporter for this Japanese article assumed on good faith that the Iraqis moved the Japanese there "for their own safety".

My own assessment is that either Saddam is there in the basement, or weapons of mass destruction are there or perhaps both. They want to have as many Western peace activists and perhaps journalists killed in that particular area of Baghdad as possible, perhaps.

[kinghorse]

Voluntary Human shields are aiding and abetting the enemy. Voluntary Human shields should not be a consideration at all in determining whether or not to attack a strategic target. Period.

[ARCADIA]

I am begining to suspect that Saddam is hiding out at the Rashid Hotel in Baghdad. We should have his body on the street within hours.

[AmericanInTokyo]

you know, uh, what's the point?

[Robert DeLong]

That would turn out to be a safe place to hide, underneath a building they know the coalition of the willing would never target.

[theDentist]

I'm looking into the future an foresee a dam explosion, cause: imperialist-zionist American and Israeli troops.

[Grampa Dave]

Well if Soddomite is still alive, he can't hide out in any of his palaces or the Russian Embassy anymore.

This makes me concerned for the innocent people of Baghdad. What if their drinking water is contaminated with a poison or a biological agent by the Fedayeen?

[Tunehead54]

Maybe they plan to poison their own water supply? Blow up the plant? Just a thought ...

---

[sistergoldenhair]

My own assessment is that either Saddam is there in the basement, or weapons of mass destruction are there or perhaps both.

Or they didn't want any witnesses when they tampered with the water supply.

[EaglesUpForever]

Also possible the regime will attempt to mess with the water supply in a final suicide act... of course the press would blame such a disaster on us.

[Incorrigible]

Somebody set us up the bomb!

[demnomo]

This must be the Hotel where Baghdad Bob will hold his next press conference. The Coalition already has the Hotel Palestine basement in its sites...

[xJones]

They weren't going to get bombed by us at a water-purification plant, so what's in that hotel? And who cares if a pack of idiots gets blown up because they were stupid enough to support Saddam? If they survive, take the little dumplings to some of his torture chambers and give them a guided tour.

[DianaN]

Perhaps Saddam is in a bunker under the Rashid Hotel or maybe he's in one in the Palestine Hotel; what safer place than where all the reporters are? To further add to the choices go to google.com and type in Saddam+hotel and you will find out that the regime rented an entire luxury hotel in Syria.
Perhaps we should make a stop in Syria before we move to take out the arrogant French regime (who very recently went to the Pope to have the Pope handlers send out a world memo that the UN should be the ones to handle the reconstruction in Iraq).
Diana

[rj45mis]

Voluntary Human shields should not be a consideration at all in determining whether or not to attack a strategic target. Period.

I totally agree. There can no precedent be set to allow these fools to protect those under judgment.

[thoughtomator]

Involuntary human shields are hostages. What a line of work - March-April, 2003: Human Shield/Hostage Hostage for dying regime; employer exercised 9mm option to retain employment for an extended period; no references available, or indeed, even alive.

[Kevin Curry]

Perhaps Saddam is in a bunker under the Rashid Hotel or maybe he's in one in the Palestine Hotel; what safer place than where all the reporters are?

Intriguing thought.

[Allan]

interesting

[kimoajax]

Perhaps we now know where the last remnants of the outgoing leadership hope to conduct their "peace negotiations" from....the Rashid Hotel. Does this make better sense out of all of the misinformation by the information minister. The real purpose is perhaps to keep as many foreign news people and human shields in the hotel as they can.

Just speculation, but I don't see many strategy options open to the leaders of this outgoing regime that will keep them from shortly being in front of a firing squad.

We will soon see.