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Iran school bombing: grounds to believe US was behind atrocity, UN finds

354 points · 307 comments · hebelehubele

  1. Wildgoose · · focus · HN ↗
    Seeing as it was a "double tap" it was clearly a deliberate target. Bomb the school, wait until officers from the nearby base with kids at the school arrive to try and rescue their daughters and hit it again. Clearly a war crime, possibly using Israeli targeting information, which clouds which State is ultimately responsible.
    1. jvanderbot · · focus · HN ↗
      Yes, the definition of war crime is not "intentionally targeted building" it is "intentionally targeted building that it knew was non-military and full of civilians". If you plausibly believed it to be a military target, then it's plausibly not a war crime.

      The question about whether US launched the missiles is not really in dispute, the intent and knowledge is in dispute. NYT did a great analysis essentially concluding it was plausibly a mistake, not an intentional or indiscriminate civilian attack.

      More here: <a href="https:&#x2F;&#x2F;news.ycombinator.com&#x2F;item?id=49739018#49741081">https:&#x2F;&#x2F;news.ycombinator.com&#x2F;item?id=49739018#49741081

      1. bigbadfeline · · focus · HN ↗
        &gt; &quot;intentionally targeted building that it knew was non-military and full of civilians&quot;

        That formulation guarantees that most war crimes won&#x27;t be revealed as such. The militaries of the world are operating under top secrecy about what they know, knew or plan on knowing, ditto for their intent. They can claim whatever they please without regard to actual reality, proof is impossible to obtain.

        Thus, under this formulation, war crimes are doubly guarded by the secrecy of two kinds of information available only to the perpetrators and protected by harsh laws again any leaks.

        Assange knows, he dealt with it but I doubt he or anyone else will try to break the secrecy again given the zeal of his prosecution. To think that what he revealed was an isolated case is laughable.

        1. cindyllm · · focus · HN ↗

          [dead]

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