- (AKI) - The US defence secretary Donald Rumsfeld has
banned the use of the word 'insurgents' when referring to the militants
operating in Iraq. "Over the weekend I thought to myself. 'You know,
that gives them a greater legitimacy than they seem to merit," he
told journalists during a Pentagon briefing on Tuesday. "It was an
epiphany," he said, throwing his hands in the air.
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- Rumsfeld encouraged those at the briefing to consult
their dictionaries for the definition of 'insurgent', which, according
to one Oxford dictionary means "a rebel", while insurrection
is defined as "rising against established authority".
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- "These people aren't trying to promote something
other than disorder, and to take over that country and turn it into a caliphate
and then spread it around the world. This is a group of people who don't
merit the word 'insurgency', I think," Rumsfeld said.
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- However, the ban proved a problem for the recently-appointed
Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman General Peter Pace, who ran into trouble
as the briefing continued, stumbling and pausing as he struggled to come
up with a new word to describe the Iraqi insurgents. "I have to use
the word 'insurgent' because I can't think of a better word right now,"
he admitted to Rumsfeld, who immediately suggested "'Enemies of the
legitimate Iraqi government', how's that?". But, while discussing
explosive devices Pace then used the 'I' word again, prompting Rumsfeld
to recoil in mock horror.
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- Pace also proved himself to be no 'yes' man. When questioned
about torture by the Iraqi authorities, Rumsfeld said "obviously,
the United States does not have a responsibility." Pace, however,
evidently disagreed, telling the briefing "It is the absolute responsibility
of every US service member, if they see inhumane treatment being conducted,
to intervene, to stop it."
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- When Rumsfeld tried to correct him, saying, "I don't
think you mean they have an obligation to physically stop it; it's to report
it," Pace stood his ground. "If they are physically present when
inhumane treatment is taking place, sir, they have an obligation to try
to stop it," the Joint Chiefs Chairman stated.
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- Commenting on the briefing, Washington Post opinionist
Dana Milbank wrote that despite leading the US invasion of Iraq in 2003
as defence secretary, Rumsfeld came across at times as someone simply observing
the Iraq war on television. He deflected one question about the use of
white phospherous on the battlefield onto General Pace, and asked how widespread
the abuse in Iraq was, he answered: "I am not going to be judging
it from 4,000 miles away."
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- Asked about "uniformed death squads" in Iraq,
after the brother of a prominant Sunni leader murdered along with his sons
last week said the killers had Iraqi army uniforms and vehicles, Rumsfeld
first tried to avoid answering, saying "I'm not going to comment on
hypothetical questions." On the journalist pointing out that it was
not hypothetical the defence secretary then suggested that the death-squad
allegations could be politically motivated, before saying, "I just
don't know. I can only talk about what I know." And with an exaggerated
shrug of the shoulders he rounded off his answer with, "That's life".
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- (Slb/Aki)
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