"Things are almost back to
normal here. We have teachers and books. Things are getting better." --
New York Times 3-26-05 "Vital Signs of a Ruined City Grow
stronger in Falluja"
Cameras aren’t allowed in Falluja;
neither are journalists. If they were then we would have first-hand
proof of America’s greatest war crime in the last 30 years; the
Dresden-like bombardment of an entire city of 250,000. Instead, we have
to rely on eyewitness accounts that appear on the internet or the
spurious reports that sporadically surface in the New York Times and
Associated Press. For the most part, the Times and AP have shown
themselves to be undependable; limiting their coverage to the details
that support the overall goals of the occupation. The truth about
Falluja is far different than the bogus reports in the AP and Times.
The fact that even now, a full 6 months after the siege, camera crews
and journalists are banned from the city, tells us a great deal about
the extent of America’s war crimes. Just two weeks ago, a photographer
from Al Aribiyya news was arrested while leaving Falluja and his
equipment and film were confiscated. To date, he is still being held
without explanation and there is no indication when he will be
released. This illustrates the fear among the military brass that the
truth about Falluja will leech out and destroy whatever modest support
still exists for the occupation. Journalists should realize that
Falluja may turn out to be the administration’s Achilles heel; a My
Lai-type atrocity that turns the public decisively against Bush’s war.[more]