State of the Union SF Protest

"The overthrow of a racist regime that used chemical weapons against the Kurds and that wasted a nation’s natural resources on war rather than schools, the reform of colonialism’s most disastrous legacy, the state of Iraq- these are goals worthy of the support of every Social Democrat. "

http://www.iraqfoundation.org/news/2003/ajan/28_barham.html

WASHINGTON, 30/12 2002 — High on the Bush administration's list of justifications for war against Iraq are President Saddam Hussein's use of chemical weapons, nuclear and biological programs, and his contacts with international terrorists. What U.S. officials rarely acknowledge is that these offenses date back to a period when Hussein was seen in Washington as a valued ally.

Among the people instrumental in tilting U.S. policy toward Baghdad during the 1980-88 Iran-Iraq war was Donald H. Rumsfeld, now defense secretary, whose December 1983 meeting with Hussein as a special presidential envoy paved the way for normalization of U.S.-Iraqi relations. Declassified documents show that Rumsfeld traveled to Baghdad at a time when Iraq was using chemical weapons on an "almost daily" basis in defiance of international conventions.

http://home.cogeco.ca/~observer/30-12-02-us-roll-irq-chemical-weapons.html

"Iraq's Kurds Fear Results of U.S. Attack on Saddam
Reuters
July 29, 2002
Iraq's breakaway Kurds fear that a possible U.S. attempt to topple President Saddam Hussein could lead to death and destruction for them and their mountainous homeland."
http://home.cogeco.ca/~kurdistanobserver/29-7-02-reu-barham-fear-us-attack-saddam.html

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"Frederick Forsyth, a recognized writer on the British intelligence agency, said that PKK President Abdullah Ocalan was surrendered to Turkey by the US and Britain.
The dimensions of the international conspiracy by which PKK President Abdullah Ocalan was surrendered to Turkey are coming out into the open a little more every day. Frederick Forsyth, an author who has gained worldwide fame with the novels he had written based on information from the British intelligence agency SIS, said that Ocalan was surrendered to Turkey with the approval of the US and Britain.
...
'We made the Kurdish groups fight each other'
Forsyth recalled that Turkey was the only NATO country with a border with Russia and continued to say the following: "There were always relations of direct or inverse proportions between our service, the CIA, and the Turkish secret service. The Kurdish matter was one factor influencing this. The position of the Kurds has been complicated and difficult in every period. After the collapse of the Soviet Union, Saddam Hussein arose as a dangerous power in the region. The West determined their strength against Saddam Hussein and wanted Turkey to stand behind the groups in Northern Iraq. Thus, Turkey drew the KDP closer to itself. The reason for this was political. We and the Americans did not want Turkey to become stronger. Additionally, we also wanted to use the Kurds against Saddam. That is why we cooperated with the Kurds."
http://www.kurdishobserver.com/2001/03/15/hab04.html