Below the jump is the Call to Conscience issued by the Panel of the Citizens’ Hearing on the Legality of U.S. Actions in Iraq. The Citizens’ Hearing heard testimony from Iraq War veterans and experts in international law and policy that would have been presented in Lt. Ehren Watada’s court martial had the military judge not excluded it from evidence. After hearing this powerful testimony, the Citizens’ Hearing Panel, chaired by David Krieger - who asked that this report be forwarded to our lists - found the war in Iraq to have been initiated illegally under international law and the U.S. Constitution. The Panel further found that a pattern of war crimes and crimes against humanity are being committed in Iraq, and that Lt. Watada is acting legally, honorably and in accord with his oath to support and defend the Constitution of the United States in refusing orders to deploy to Iraq. The Call to Conscience issued by the Citizens’ Hearing Panel makes a number of important recommendations. Lt. Watada’s court martial begins today at Ft. Lewis, Washington.
Testimony was heard from experts in military policy, international law and war crimes:
- Daniel Ellsberg Military analyst who released the Pentagon Papers in the Vietnam War;
- Denis Halliday Former UN Assistant Secretary-General, coordinated Iraq humanitarian aid;
- Richard Falk Professor Emeritus of International Law at Princeton University;
- Antonia Juhasz Policy-analyst and author on U.S. economic policies in Iraq;
- John Burroughs Lawyers’ Committee on Nuclear Policy Executive Director;
- Benjamin G. Davis Assoc. Prof. of Law, University of Toledo; expert on law of war;
- Francis Boyle Professor of international law at Univ. of Illinois (video).
- Marjorie Cohn National Lawyers' Guild President; Thomas Jefferson law school (video)
Other testifiers were military veterans, and others directly affected by the Iraq War:
- Ann Wright Retired Army Colonel and State Department official;
- Darrell Anderson Army 1st Armored Division in Baghdad & Najaf; awarded Purple Heart;
- Harvey Tharp Former U.S. Navy Lieutenant and JAG stationed in Iraq;
- Geoffrey Millard 8 years in Army National Guard; awarded 13 medals;
- Dennis Kyne 15 years as Army medic & drill sergeant; trained in NBC warfare;
- Chanan Suarez-Diaz Former Navy hospital corpsman; Purple Heart and valor commendation;
- Stacy Bannerman Military Families Speak Out; author of "When the War Came Home"
- Eman Khammas Iraqi human rights advocate (video).
Read about it here and see testimony here.
Audio and video here.
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