Bush, Blair on war crimes raps in Switzerland

News24 ^ | May 02 2003 | Sapa-AFP

[knighthawk]

Bern - A private group, "Solidarity with victims of the war against Iraq", has filed war crimes charges in Switzerland against United States President George W Bush and British Prime Minister Tony Blair, says the public prosecutor's office.

In a submission, the Geneva-based group said it represented Iraqi nationals whose family members had been victims of acts of war during the invasion carried out by US and British troops.

But the prosecutor's department said Bush and Blair would be immune from prosecution while in office, even if they entered Swiss territory.

In Belgium on Wednesday, an attorney said charges would be filed against General Tommy Franks, commanding coalition forces in Iraq.

He said the charges would be laid on behalf of 19 Iraqis who, he said, had been victims of war crimes during the action launched on March 20 to topple Saddam Hussein from power.

In March, seven Iraqi families filed charges in Belgium against Bush's father, former US president George Bush, for alleged offences during the 1991 Gulf war.

The charges were also directed at secretary of state Colin Powell, then chairman of the US joint chiefs of staff, vice-president Dick Cheney, defence secretary in the administration of Bush sen, and General Norman Schwarzkopf, who commanded the US-led operation "Desert Storm" in 1991.

The Swiss public prosecutor's office said it would require further clarification from "Solidarity with victims of the war against Iraq" which had filed charges against Bush and Blair.

The group includes Swiss leftwing parliamentary deputy Christian Grobet.

[knighthawk]

Switzerland? Hey, they are one of the countries supplying Iraq with chemical weapons. Maybe the Kurds and Iranians need to drag the Swiss into their onw court.

[knighthawk]

And also consider this:

http://www.fas.org/nuke/guide/iraq/facility/akashat.htm

The Akashat Mine, located 420 km West of Baghdad, is a Uranium ore production facility associated with the Al Qaim site. Iraq has reserves of uranium ore which continue to be mined at Akashat, on the border with Syria. The Al Qaim facility, 100 km to the north east, remains capable of ore refinement. By the mid-1980s Iraq had at least 164 tons of yellowcake, obtained at the Akashat mine and processed in Iraq at Al Qaim, a plant built by a Swiss company.

http://www.atimes.com/atimes/Middle_East/EB05Ak02.html

In the summer of 1994, the BND conducted a major study to estimate the magnitude of the - as at that time - still undeclared and concealed Iraqi WMD arsenal, relying on sales records in its possession of post-Gulf War German, Austrian, and Swiss exports of technologies, sub-systems and strategic materials to Iraq.

[knighthawk]

Europe-list

If people want on or off this list, please let me know.

[arete]

This is to be expected. That is why it was important to get UN approval for cover. Plus, there are going to be a zillion lawsuits filed.

Richard W.

[ScaniaBoy]

The Swiss don't like people playing fast and loose with their justice system, especially if it may affect their trade...

Don't think this will go very far.

ScaniaBoy

[sinkspur]

This is to be expected. That is why it was important to get UN approval for cover. Plus, there are going to be a zillion lawsuits filed.

You act as if this is to be taken seriously.

These lawsuits are nonsense, and you know it. Belgium? Switzerland?

What are they gonna do, arrest Bush with knives and throw waffles at him?

[Grampa Dave]

Backhoe fyi.

[Grampa Dave]

Double Dittoes on this reply of yours:

These lawsuits are nonsense, and you know it. Belgium? Switzerland?

What are they gonna do, arrest Bush with knives and throw waffles at him?

[Desecrated]

Scorecard update:
Arafat and Saddam: 3 decades of murderous terrorism and dictatorship=Nobel Piece(sic)Prize and the support of Europe/UN

Bush, Blair, Franks: Liberate 24 million Iraqis with minimal civilian casualties=war crimes charges

Makes sense to me!

[sinkspur]

Wasn't Switzerland the place that stored Hitler's gold and loot that he stole from the 6 million Jews he killed?

Coat-holders for genocidal maniacs are what the Swiss are.

[marron]

This is really great news. The best thing we can do is to simply stop paying attention to these people, to stopping caring what they think. They are not rational. They are not our friends. They are not intellectually honest.

When a group of people consistently aligns itself with your enemies, at some point you have to recognized that they are also your enemies. When people are consistently intellectually dishonest, at some point you must understand that they are dishonest. When people consistently oppose moral action, you must eventually conclude that they are immoral.

Euro war crimes trials of our leaders would do so much to bring this into focus, that I really wish to see it go forward. Americans are finally finding their spines, and this war has brought clarity on many levels. An EU prosecution would just be icing on the cake.

[monday]

"Wasn't Switzerland the place that stored Hitler's gold and loot that he stole from the 6 million Jews he killed?"

Actually that is where the Jews themselves stored their gold and loot in order to keep it away from Hitler. Unfortunately most of them didn't survive to collect after the war was over. They should have kept themselves there as well.

[Jaded]

Thanks for the visual. That's funny. Throw waffles.

Why doesn't everyone else sue Hussein? That'd be interesting.

[monday]

"Don't think this will go very far. "

I tend to agree. Just because some idiots file a lawsuit there doesn't mean the Swiss are going to allow it.

Its funny that so many people here automaticly assume the worst. What if these idiots had filed suit against Bush in the US? Would they be bashing Americans now?

[Mister Baredog]

That is why it was important to get UN approval for cover.

That would NOT stop these MORONS, get real, the UN is a farce!!!!

[Mister Baredog]

Wasn't Switzerland the place that stored Hitler's gold and loot that he stole from the 6 million Jews he killed?

And they are still sitting on most of it.

[inquest]

Wasn't Switzerland the place that stored Hitler's gold and loot that he stole from the 6 million Jews he killed?

You shouldn't repeat unsubstantiated negative rumors about people.

[marron]

Yes, Switzerland is the place where both the Jews and Hitler did their banking. The money from both is still there.

[detsaoT]

What if these idiots had filed suit against Bush in the US? Would they be bashing Americans now?

Naw, just the LAWYERS.

;) ttt

[geedee]

We should handle this quite simply . . . pass an American law that says . . . if ANY court or government tries to prosecute ANY American citizen for war crimes without first getting the approval of the United States, the United States will take the proceedings as an ACT OF WAR and respond accordingly.

These panty-waist pacifists can drive us crazy if we don't put a firm stop to this nonsense RIGHT FRICKIN' NOW!