real, live propaganda re: Iraq

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15 March 2002

U.S. Marks Anniversary of Iraq's Murder of 5,000 Civilians
(Boucher recalls 1988 chemical weapons attack on Halabja)

Approximately 5,000 Iraqi civilians were killed and another 10,000
were injured March 16, 1988 when Iraqi President Saddam Hussein
ordered the aerial bombardment of Halabja with mustard gas and other
poison gases.

"Though unconscionable, Saddam Hussein's chemical weapons attack on
Halabja was not an isolated incident," said State Department Spokesman
Richard Boucher, reminding journalists of the 14th anniversary of the
tragedy.

Halabja was the worst hit of about 250 Kurdish villages that were
targeted by the Iraqi leader with chemical and biological weapons
between April 1987 and August 1988.

"As we remember Halabja, we want to reaffirm to ourselves and the
international community that Saddam Hussein's regime must never be
permitted to rebuild its weapons of mass destruction programs or once
again threaten its neighbors or its own people," Boucher said.

The following excerpt on Halabja is taken from the regular State
Department press briefing, March 15.

(begin excerpt)

Tomorrow marks the 14th anniversary of Saddam Hussein's heinous
chemical weapons attack on Halabja, the predominantly Kurdish city in
northeastern Iraq. On March 16th, 1988 the Iraqi military conducted an
aerial bombardment of Halabja with mustard and other poison gases that
killed roughly 5,000 civilians and injured another 10,000. Though
unconscionable, Saddam Hussein's chemical weapons attack on Halabja
was not an isolated incident.

It is policies and practices such as those that led President Bush to
characterize Iraq as part of an axis of evil, Iraq arms to threaten
the peace of the world, posing a grave and growing danger through its
pursuit of weapons of mass destruction. Iraq remains a threat because
of the pursuit of weapons of mass destruction, and the willingness of
Iraq's leaders to use them.

As we remember Halabja, we want to reaffirm to ourselves and the
international community that Saddam Hussein's regime must never be
permitted to rebuild its weapons of mass destruction programs, or once
again threaten its neighbors or its own people. There's a somewhat
more complete statement on this that I'll give to you. We have done
this, as you know, in previous years on the anniversary of this date,
and I think it's an important time for people to remember what's
happened and who in the world has indeed used chemical weapons in the
past, and why we see this as a continuing threat.

(end excerpt)

(Distributed by the Office of International Information Programs, U.S.
Department of State. Web site: http://usinfo.state.gov)