IRAKKRIEG/HINTERGRUND: Die Wahrheit im Krieg und deren Leibwache aus Lügen - 500 Beiträge pro Seite

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dpa-afx Montag 31. März 2003, 11:55 Uhr

IRAKKRIEG/HINTERGRUND: Die Wahrheit im Krieg und deren Leibwache aus Lügen

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BERLIN (dpa-AFX) - "In Kriegszeiten ist die Wahrheit so kostbar, dass sie immer von einer Leibwache aus Lügen umgeben sein sollte." Winston Churchill hat das gesagt. Und US-Verteidigungsminister Donald Rumsfeld hat sich an diesen Satz erinnert und treuherzig versichert: "Ich hoffe inbrünstig, dass wir so arbeiten, dass das nie nötig werden wird." Bisher allerdings sieht es eher so aus, als gelte auch im Irakkrieg auf beiden Seiten der Satz: "Die Wahrheit ist immer das erste Opfer des Krieges."


Mehr als 500 Journalisten sind "eingebettet" in die US- Streitkräfte (und deren Berichterstattungsbeschränkungen unterworfen), etwa 70 beliefern die Welt mit Informationen und Bildern aus Bagdad. Das hat nicht verhindern können, dass die Kriegsparteien mit der Wahrheit sparsam umgehen und Information und Desinformation als Mittel des Krieges einsetzen.

FANTASIEZAHLEN UND VIDEOBÄNDER

Gleich zu Beginn des Krieges schürten die Amerikaner Zweifel, ob Saddam Hussein denn überhaupt noch lebe oder nicht doch nur vom Videoband spreche, während der irakische Informationsminister Mohammed al-Sahhaf behauptete, die Live-Bilder bei CNN aus einer vorrückenden US-Panzerkolonne stammten in Wirklichkeit von einem Endlos-Videoband. Und wenn die Amerikaner behaupteten, der Kommandeur der 51. Division sei desertiert (was dieser wenig später im arabischen Sender Al-Dschasira glaubhaft bestritt), dann hielten die Iraker mit Fantasiezahlen von zerstörten Panzern, Hubschraubern und Kampfflugzeugen dagegen.

Amerikaner und Briten haben mit zumindest voreiligen Berichten über die Einnahme der Städte Umm Kasr, Nasirija und Basra Erinnerungen an den Beginn des von Präsident George Bush sr. 1990/91 geführten Golfkriegs geweckt. Im September 1990, also nach der irakischen Invasion Kuwaits, behauptete das Pentagon, 250.000 weitere Iraker und 1.500 Panzer stünden an der Grenze vor dem Einmarsch: Aktuelle sowjetische Satellitenfotos zeigten damals nur leere Wüste. Und auch bei Beginn der Bodenoperationen im Februar 1991 standen die USA nur 183.000 Irakern gegenüber, weniger als der Hälfte der Pentagon-Schätzung. "Die Iraker waren vielleicht nicht so stark wie wir gedacht haben, aber das macht für mich keinen großen Unterschied", sagte General Colin Powell danach. Heute ist er Außenminister.

Die Nicht-Existenz des irakischen Truppenaufmarsches von 1990 wird aber noch übertroffen durch Nayirah, ein 15-jähriges Mädchen aus dem Irak. Sie hatte im Herbst 1990 tränenreich vor dem US-Kongress darüber berichtet, wie sie als Freiwillige in einem Krankenhaus in Kuwait mit eigenen Augen gesehen habe, wie irakische Soldaten 312 Babies aus der Entbindungsstation zum Sterben auf den Boden warfen und mit den Inkubatoren verschwanden. Erst später stellte sich heraus: Nayirah war tatsächlich die Tochter des kuwaitischen Botschafters in Was hington und schon lange in keinem Krankenhaus mehr gewesen.

HORRORMÄRCHEN UND GRÄUELGESCHICHTEN

"Wir wussten damals nicht, dass das nicht stimmte. Aber es war bei der Mobilisierung der öffentlichen Meinung sehr nützlich", sagte später Brent Scowcroft, damaliger Sicherheitsberater von Bush sr. Das Horrormärchen aus der Entbindungsstation steht in bester Tradition der Gräuelgeschichten, mit denen der Gegner dämonisiert wird. Im Ersten Weltkrieg behaupteten die Briten, deutsche Soldaten hätten belgische Babies in die Luft geworfen und dann auf ihren Bajonetten aufgespießt - ein Klassiker der Lügenpropaganda, der heute in der Fachliteratur gerne in einem Atemzug mit Nayirah genannt wird.

Beide Seiten profitieren davon, dass ungeachtet der Präsenz von Journalisten vieles zunächst nicht nachprüfbar ist. Höchst unwahrscheinlich ist, dass - wie die Iraker behaupten - ein Bauer mit einer alten Flinte einen Hubschrauber abgeschossen hat oder dass die Alliierten die Bewohner Faus zwangen, sich als Kriegsgefangene zu präsentieren. Unbewiesen ist der von Briten behauptete Volksaufstand in Basra ebenso wie die von den US-Soldaten angeblich gefundene Chemiewaffenfabrik.

Wann immer es hingegen im Interesse einer Seite liegt, so wissen erfahrene Kriegskorrespondenten, macht die Recherche keine Probleme: Die Iraker zeigen bereitwillig zivile Opfer in Krankenhäusern und getötete oder gefangene Gegner in ihrer Gewalt, Amerikaner und Briten präsentieren ihre Soldaten gerne als Freunde und Helfer. Als die "Sir Galahad" am Freitag mit 200 Tonnen Lebensmittel und Arzneimitteln in Umm Kasr anlegte, waren alle Journalisten herzlich willkommen./eb/DP/sh

---Von Dieter Ebeling, dpa---




Quelle:
http://de.biz.yahoo.com/030331/36/3dfsi.html

[saketalo]

The IRAQWAR.RU analytical center was created recently by a group of journalists and military experts from Russia to provide accurate and up-to-date news and analysis of the war against Iraq. The following is the English translation of the IRAQWAR.RU report based on the Russian military intelligence (the Main Intelligence Directorate, or GRU) reports.
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March 29, 2003, 0924hrs MSK (GMT +4 DST), Moscow - During the past day the situation on the US-Iraqi front remained largely unchanged. The US is continuing reinforcing the attack group near Karabela for a thrust toward Baghdad. By the morning of March 29 up to 20,000 coalition troops were massed in the area of Karabela. This forces includes up to 200 tanks, 150 artillery systems and more than 250 helicopters. The order for the attack will be given by the coalition commander Gen. Tommy Franks, who, according to intercepted radio communications, will personally inspect the troops during the next several hours.

Around 1900hrs yesterday an Apache attack helicopter crashed. Intercepted radio communications show that the helicopter was heavily damaged in a combat mission. The helicopter`s pilot lost control during landing and the helicopter crashed, causing serious damage to another helicopter that landed earlier.

The coalition troops have so far failed to take An-Nasiriya despite of the categorical orders from the command and more than 800 combat missions by the strike aircraft. All attempts to break through the Iraqi defense were met by Iraqi counterattacks. After 24 hours of fighting the coalition troops only managed to advance several hundred meters in two sectors near An-Nasiriya at the cost of 4 destroyed armored personnel carriers, no less that 3 Marines killed by sniper and mortar fire, 10 wounded and 2 missing in action. The exact Iraqi losses are being determined.

The Americans have also failed to advance near An-Najaf. Every coalition attack was met by massive artillery barrages from the Iraqi side. Later during the day the Iraqis mounted a counterattack throwing the US forces back by 1.5-2 kilometers. No fewer than 10 Marines were killed or wounded. After exchanging fire for six hours both warring sides remained in the same positions. Iraqi losses in this area are estimated to be 20 killed and up to 40 wounded.

Near Basra the British troops pushed the Iraqi defense lines on the Fao peninsula but were unable to capture the entire peninsula. The British advance was a maximum of 4 kilometers from the highway leading to Basra. Radio intercepts show that in this attack the Iraqis shot down a British helicopter. Additionally, two tanks and one APCs were destroyed by landmines. At least 2 [British] servicemen were killed, around 20 were wounded and 15 were captured by the Iraqis.

Exchange of fire continued in the area of the Basra airport. The Iraqis destroyed one coalition APC wounding two coalition soldiers. The Iraqi losses are difficult to estimate, but available information suggests that up to 20 Iraqi soldiers and local militia members might have been killed in the air and artillery strikes.

All attempts by the British troops to break through the Iraqi defenses from the south along the Al-Arab river have yielded not results. The British command reported that it is unable to storm Basra with the available forces and will require no less than two additional brigades and at least five additional artillery battalions. Thus, to avoid further casualties the British are adopting defensive tactics, while trying to maintain a tight blockade around Basra and trying to improve their positions with small localized attacks. The British are also maintaining pressure on the Iraqi positions on the Fao peninsula.

The psychological levels among the city`s residents, according to interviews, is far from critical. The Iraqi military made several public announcements to the residents offering them a chance to leave the city. However, most of the residents do not want to leave, fearing the faith of the Palestinian refugees, who, after losing their homes, gained pariah status in the Arab world. Basra`s residents were extremely depressed by the video footage aired by the coalition command showing Iraqis on the occupied territories fighting for food and water being distributed by the coalition soldiers. The city`s population views this as a sample of what awaits them if the Americans come...

At the Al-Kuwait airport the unloading of the 4th Mechanized Infantry Division is continuing and is expected to be completed by the night of April 1. During a night flight one of the US military transport aircraft requested an emergency landing. What happened to the plane is still being determined.

Currently the coalition command is deciding how better use the 4th Infantry Division. The complete deployment [of the division] and preparations for combat are expected to take at least 10 days. However, the combat units require immediate reinforcements and it is possible that the [4th Infantry} Division will be joining combat in stages, as the units become ready. This will mean a considerable reduction of the Division`s combat effectiveness.

A report was obtained, prepared by the Al-Kuwait-based [coalition] Psychological Operations Tactical Group for the [coalition] Special Ground Forces Command. The report analyzed the effectiveness of the information and propaganda war. According to the report, analysis of the television broadcasts, intercepted radio communications, interrogations of Iraqi POWs show that psychologically the Iraqis are now "more stable and confident" that they were during the last days before the war. This, according to the report, is due primarily to the coalition`s numerous military failures.

"...Following nervousness and depression [of the Iraqis] during the first days of the war we can now observe a burst of patriotic and nationalistic feelings. ...There has been a sharp increase in the number of Iraqi refugees, who left the country before the war, returning to Iraq. A "cult of war" against the US and the UK is now emerging among the Iraqis...", the report states. [Reverse translation from Russian]

[Coalition] analysts believe that if this attitude of the Iraqis is not changed within the next 7 days, a "resistance ideology" may take over the Iraqi minds, making the final [coalition] victory even more difficult. In response to this report the US Army Psychological Operations command decided to combine all Iraqi POWs into large groups and to distribute the resulting video footage to the world media. A more active use of the Iraqi opposition was suggested for propaganda work in the occupied villages. The same opposition members will be used to create video footage of the "repented" Iraqi POWs and footage of the local [Iraqi] population "opposing Saddam."

Radio communications intercepted during the last five days suggest that the coalition is using Israeli airfield for conducting night air strikes against Iraq. Combat aircraft are taking off regularly from the [Israeli] Hatzerim and the Navatim airbases do not return to the same bases but fly toward the border with Jordan while maintaining complete radio silence.

Possibly these are just Israeli Air Force exercises, However, [Russian] radio intercept and radar units observe increased intensity of radio communications coming from the Jordanian air force and air defense communication centers during such overflights, as well as changes in the operating modes of the US Army "Patriot" tracking radars deployed in Jordan. This indicates the Israeli airbases as used as forward airfield or that some of the coalition air force units are based there. Normally the IAF F-15I fighter-bombers and A-4N strike aircraft operate from the Hatzerim airbase and the F-16 fighter-bombers operate from the Nevatim base.

Experts believe that these airbases may be used by the F-117 stealth bombers "officially" based at the Al-Udaid airbase in Qatar. Using these two locations minimizes the risk to the F-117s by allowing them to fly along the left bank of the Euphrates (in the direction of Turkey) and to avoid the dangerous maneuvering over Iraq.

The destruction of the telephone stations in Baghdad did nothing to disrupt the communications of the Iraqi army. The coalition command acknowledged this fact after analyzing the dense [Iraqi] radio traffic. Because of that the USAF was ordered to employ the most powerful available [conventional] munitions against predetermined strategic targets. This attacks will be carried out immediately before renewing ground advance.