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Civilians Caught in the War
Damage to houses in the Wahda section of Baghdad, near the Iraqi regional intelligence headquarters. |
Their propaganda success in the baby milk factory controversy delighted the Iraqis, who took CNN reporter Peter Arnett on field trips to see more "collateral" damage to civilian sites. With tens of thousands of sorties flown, Baghdad only managed to produce a half dozen compelling cases of major civilian damage. Some were errors in bombing, others were the unavoidable damage that comes with air attacks. Each publicized example resulted in increased pressure on the Bush administration to end the hostilities.
No matter how smart the bombs, the realities are that some of them missed their targets but still exploded and that civilian casualties and collateral damage occurred.
Iraq's radio and television establishment in Baghdad was a high priority target; planners wanted to shut down the regime's communication with the people.
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The evidence suggests that errant U.S. bombs were not the only explanation. The Air Force blames Iraqi surface-to-air missiles, which were fired by the hundreds. Many are thought to have destroyed civilian housing when they fell back to Earth. Other possibilities include both Navy and Air Force decoy drones (a total of 77 were fired at Baghdad in the opening days of the war) as well as anti-radiation missiles fired at Baghdad radar sites.
Damage to buildings behind the Alwiya telephone exchange in downtown Baghdad. |
During Desert Storm, the Air Force discussed none of these possibilities and made no comparisons to the devasation of World War II bombing. The bombing of the Amiriyah shelter in Baghdad killed more than 400 Iraqi civilians on the night of Feb. 13. It was the worst single incident of civilian carnage in the war, exceeding all of the casualties in Baghdad over the previous month.
© Copyright 1998 The Washington Post
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