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medpundit |
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Saturday, April 12, 2003The French documentary filmmaker Joel Soler told me how his minder took him to a hospital, ostensibly to examine the effects of sanctions, but then called in a nurse with a long needle. "He said, 'Now we'll do a series of blood tests.'" Soler jumped on the table screaming: "I said, 'I'm calling my ambassador.' If I'd been American, forget about it." And don’t forget this: The officer said special-operations forces found what looked like a ``prototype'' Iraqi torture chamber in the hospital's basement, with batteries and metal prods. Briefing reporters at Central Command headquarters, Brig. Gen. Brooks said the hospital apparently was being used as a military command post... Members of the strike force who stayed behind found ammunition, maps and a terrain model in the basement of the hospital. Brooks said that was proof the Iraqis are using civilian facilities to disguise and protect military installations. He said the troops found no evidence that the hospital was used to torture U.S. prisoners or opponents of the Iraqi government. It might just be that ordinary Iraqis don’t view their hospitals as havens of rest, but as one more tentacle of the Hussein regime. Especially when you compare the above to the Iraqi secret police headquarters: There was also a superbly equipped hospital, though Iraq has been telling the world for years that its medical facilities have been severely damaged by UN sanctions. A U.S. Army medic showed off a cache of drugs and equipment he said was worth between US$2-million and US$4-million. "It appears that Saddam Hussein reserved the best medical treatment for the Republican Guard," said Jack Graham, a U.S. Army medic. He said the supplies will be handed out to Iraqi hospitals. Hospitals are military headquarters and military headquarters are elite hospitals - the topsy-turvy world of Saddam Hussein’s Iraq. posted by Sydney on 4/12/2003 08:51:00 AM 0 comments 0 Comments: |
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