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Richard Armitage Bitch-Slaps Arab Reporters
Conclusion of Pan-Arab Print Reportersâ Interview with Richard L. Armitage, Deputy Secretary of StateQUESTION: One follow-up, sir, very quickly -- DEPUTY SECRETARY ARMITAGE: Sure. QUESTION: -- about human rights in Iraq. There have been civilian casualties, women and children, in Fallujah. How can you promote democracy in the Middle East when youâre sending out a message that itâs okay to shoot at children and -- DEPUTY SECRETARY ARMITAGE: Oh, stop. Stop. Shame on you. I hope you were screaming about human rights during the time of Saddam Hussein. I didnât hear many in the region. We are the most humane military in the world. We punish our people when they exceed bounds, and we do it transparently. We regret every single civilian life which is lost, and we do our utmost, even putting our soldiers at risk, to prevent those. It is true that there are civilian casualties and it is true that these scenes are shown over and over, particularly on our Arab friendsâ television networks. Now we spend enormous amounts of time and put our soldiers and Marines at risk in order to try to prevent it. War is dangerous and it is difficult times, but when you ask that question, I would hope that youâd reflect on your own writing over the past, say, 30 years and see what youâve said about human rights in Iraq. Thank you all very much. Posted by: Mike Sylwester 2004-04-20 |
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