NEEDLESS DEATHS in the GULF WAR Civilian Casualties During The
Total Page:16
File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb
NEEDLESS DEATHS IN THE GULF WAR Civilian Casualties During the Air Campaign and Violations of the Laws of War A Middle East Watch Report Human Rights Watch New York $$$ Washington $$$ Los Angeles $$$ London Copyright 8 November 1991 by Human Rights Watch. All rights reserved. Printed in the United States of America. Cover design by Patti Lacobee Watch Committee Middle East Watch was established in 1989 to establish and promote observance of internationally recognized human rights in the Middle East. The chair of Middle East Watch is Gary Sick and the vice chairs are Lisa Anderson and Bruce Rabb. Andrew Whitley is the executive director; Eric Goldstein is the research director; Virginia N. Sherry is the associate director; Aziz Abu Hamad is the senior researcher; John V. White is an Orville Schell Fellow; and Christina Derry is the associate. Needless deaths in the Gulf War: civilian casualties during the air campaign and violations of the laws of war. p. cm -- (A Middle East Watch report) Includes bibliographical references. ISBN 1-56432-029-4 1. Persian Gulf War, 1991--United States. 2. Persian Gulf War, 1991-- Atrocities. 3. War victims--Iraq. 4. War--Protection of civilians. I. Human Rights Watch (Organization) II. Series. DS79.72.N44 1991 956.704'3--dc20 91-37902 CIP Human Rights Watch Human Rights Watch is composed of Africa Watch, Americas Watch, Asia Watch, Helsinki Watch, Middle East Watch and the Fund for Free Expression. The executive committee comprises Robert L. Bernstein, chair; Adrian DeWind, vice chair; Roland Algrant, Lisa Anderson, Peter Bell, Alice Brown, William Carmichael, Dorothy Cullman, Irene Diamond, Jonathan Fanton, Jack Greenberg, Alice H. Henkin, Stephen Kass, Marina Kaufman, Jeri Laber, Aryeh Neier, Bruce Rabb, Harriet Rabb, Kenneth Roth, Orville Schell, Gary Sick, and Robert Wedgeworth. The staff includes Aryeh Neier, executive director; Kenneth Roth, deputy director; Holly J. Burkhalter, Washington director; Ellen Lutz, California director; Susan Osnos, press director; Jemera Rone, counsel; Joanna Weschler, Prison Project director; and Dorothy Q. Thomas, Women's Rights Project director. Executive Directors Africa Watch Americas Watch Asia Watch Rakiya Omaar Juan E. Méndez Sidney Jones Helsinki Watch Middle East Watch Fund for Free Expression Jeri Laber Andrew Whitley Gara LaMarche Addresses for Human Rights Watch 485 Fifth Avenue 1522 K Street, NW, #910 New York, NY 10017 Washington, DC 20005 Tel: (212) 972-8400 Tel: (202) 371-6592 Fax: (212) 972-0905 Fax: (202) 371-0124 10951 West Pico Blvd., #203 90 Borough High Street Los Angeles, CA 90064 London, UK SE1 1LL Tel: (213) 475-3070 Tel: (071) 378-8008 Fax: (213) 475-5613 Fax: (071) 378-8029 CONTENTS Acknowledgments .................................................................................................... ix Preface ...................................................................................................................... xi Introduction and Summary of Conclusions............................................................... 1 PART I: THE LEGAL STANDARDS CHAPTER ONE The Legal Regime Governing the Conduct of Air Warfare.................................... 25 A. International Humanitarian Law.......................................................... 28 B. Military Necessity and the Principle of Humanity .............................. 29 C. U.N. General Assembly Resolution 2444 ........................................... 30 D. Customary Law and Protocol I: Civilian Immunity and the Principle of Distinction................................................................................................. 31 E. General Restrictions on Air Warfare ................................................... 31 F. Restraints on Attacks: Prohibition of Disproportionate and other Indiscriminate Attacks.............................................................................. 41 G. Precautionary Measures....................................................................... 49 H. Verification of Military Objectives ..................................................... 53 I. Collateral Casualties and Damage ........................................................ 54 J. The Rule of Proportionality.................................................................. 55 K. Cancellation or Suspension of Attacks................................................ 55 L. Warning Requirement .......................................................................... 56 M. Special Legal Protection ..................................................................... 57 N. Prohibition Against Starvation of the Civilian Population.................. 57 O. Special Protection for Civilian Defense Shelters ................................ 62 PART II: THE AIR WAR AGAINST IRAQ Background: Operation Desert Storm..................................................................... 69 CHAPTER TWO U.S. Public Statements ............................................................................................ 75 CHAPTER THREE The Means and Methods of Attack ......................................................................... 89 A. U.S. Public Statements ........................................................................ 90 B. Daytime Bomb and Missile Attacks on Targets in Populated Areas .. 95 1. One Hundred Killed in Daytime Attack on Bridge in Southern City............................................................................................. 96 2. Scores of Civilians Killed in Flawed Attack on Bridge in Western Iraq .............................................................................. 97 3. Denials and then Admissions by the Allies about the Attack100 4. Scores of Civilians Killed in Daytime Attack on Bridge near Market in Southern City .......................................................... 102 5. Scores of Workers Killed in Market Area of Southeastern City .................................................................................................. 104 6. Morning Bombing Near Crowded Market Area in Basra .. 105 7. Daytime Bombing of Bridges in Basra .............................. 107 8. Scores of Civilians, Waiting for Cooking Gas, Killed and Injured During Daytime Attack............................................... 108 9. Civilian Factory in Southern City Bombed in Afternoon; Seven Killed............................................................................. 109 10. Legal Standards, Conclusions and Unanswered Questions110 C. "Smart" Bombs, "Dumb" Bombs, and Inaccurate Attacks on Targets in Civilian Population Centers.................................................................... 113 D. The Lack of Warning Prior to Attack: The Ameriyya Air Raid Shelter128 CHAPTER FOUR Objects Attacked: The Need for Full Disclosure and Accountability .................. 149 A. Target Selection: The Need for Public Disclosure............................ 154 B. Reports of Attacks on Food, Agricultural and Water-Treatment Facilities.................................................................................................. 160 C. The Crippling of the Electrical System.............................................. 171 D. Civilian Vehicles on Highways ......................................................... 193 1. U.S. Public Statements ........................................................ 195 2. An Inquiry by Middle East Watch ...................................... 199 3. Eyewitness Accounts: Attacks on Civilian Vehicles Carrying Evacuees to Jordan .................................................................. 201 a. Two cars directly hit by diving aircraft in daytime attack, killing two families........................................ 202 b. 30 killed in attack on bus...................................... 204 c. Cluster bomb falls meters from two cars in dawn attack......................................................................... 205 d. Strafing of Buses on Highways During Daytime . 206 e. Southern Iraq: 31 Dead in Daytime Attack on Civilian Vehicles ...................................................... 208 4. Legal Standards and Conclusions........................................ 210 5. Attacks on Jordanian Civilian Oil Tankers ......................... 213 6. Jordan's Dilemma: Dependence on Imported Oil .............. 214 7. Civilian Trucker Casualties: Eyewitness Testimony ............................................................................. 219 a. Convoy of Four Tankers Attacked ....................... 219 b. 28-truck convoy hit in nighttime attack................ 220 c. One Driver Killed, Others Injured, when Aircraft Machine-gunned Five-truck Convoy ................................................................... 220 d. Cluster Bomb Dropped at Truck Stop in Afternoon Attack........................................................................ 221 e. Two Tankers Destroyed at Intersection................ 221 f. Cluster Bomb Dropped in Daytime Attack, Two Injured....................................................................... 222 g. Refrigerator Truck Attacked Near Border ....................................................................... 223 h. Other Accounts of Strafing of Trucks by Allied Aircraft...................................................................... 224 8. Legal Standards and Conclusions........................................ 224 E. Attacks on Bedouin Tents.................................................................. 227 CHAPTER FIVE The View from the Ground: