Human Rights
- General reports on human rights
- US State Department "Country Reports on Human Rights Practices" (Iraq) (08 March 2006)
Report by the US State Department and part of a set of reports on human rights in countries receiving US aid.
While the report contains details of pre-trial detention, prisoner abuse, and torture, there is no mention of abuse by US (or other foreign) troops in the report.
"A climate of extreme violence in which people were killed for political and other reasons continued. Reports increased of killings by the government or its agents that may have been politically motivated. Additionally, common criminals, insurgents, and terrorists undermined public confidence in the security apparatus by sometimes masking their identity in police and army uniforms"
"Members of sectarian militias dominated police units to varying degrees and in different parts of the country ... During the year there were a number of deaths either at police hands or at the hands of militia members and criminals wearing police uniforms."
"Insurgents and terrorists killed thousands of citizens ... Using intimidation and violence, they kidnapped and killed government officials and workers, common citizens, party activists participating in the electoral process, civil society activists, members of security forces, and members of the armed forces, as well as foreigners. "
"Criminal and politically motivated disappearances and kidnappings, including those related to the ongoing insurgency, remained a severe problem ... During the year hundreds, if not thousands, of individuals disappeared without a trace, sometimes at the hands of the police. "
"On November 13, an overcrowded MOI detention center in Baghdad was discovered. This facility, the Jadiriyah Bunker, held 169 detainees, mostly Sunnis, many of whom showed signs of torture and abuse."
"Police abuses included threats, intimidation, beatings, and suspension by the arms or legs, as well as the reported use of electric drills and cords, and the application of electric shocks. Reportedly, police threatened or, in fact, sexually abused detainees. "
Iraqi officials were critical of the report.
- Amnesty International Report 'In cold blood: abuses by armed groups' (25 July 2005)
'Armed groups opposed to the US-led multinational force and Iraq's government are showing utter disdain for the lives of Iraqi civilians and others, continuing a pattern of war crimes and crimes against humanity'
See also the Press Release.
- Amnesty Report on Iraqi Special Tribunals (13 May 2005)
Report title: "Iraqi Special Tribunal-Fair trials not guaranteed" (thorough and fairly exhaustive critique of the Iraqi Special Tribunals)
- Human Rights NGO capacity-building in Iraq (Feb 2005)
Report of a discussion of the capacity-building needs of Iraqi NGOs, held in Amman in December 2004, and conducted by the International Human Rights Network at the request of the UK Government
- The present situation of human rights in Iraq (09 June 2004)
75-page report from the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights to the UN Economic and Social Council.
- Iraq - Country report on human rights practices (25 Feb 2004)
US government report on the human rights situation in Iraq. Mostly concerned with pre-war human rights abuses
- UNAMI Human Rights reports
UNAMI compiles a summary of human rights developments on a quarterly basis (bimonthly prior to 2007)
- US State Department "Country Reports on Human Rights Practices" (Iraq) (08 March 2006)
- Human Rights NGOs
Non-Governmental Organisations working on Human Rights in Iraq.
- American Civil Liberties Union
- Amnesty International
- Amnesty International Report 2006: Iraq Overview (23 May 2006)
The Amnetsy Internaltional 2006 Report covers events from January to December 2005.
Both the US-led Multinational Force (MNF) and Iraqi security forces committed grave human rights violations, including torture and ill-treatment, arbitrary detention without charge or trial, and excessive use of force resulting in civilian deaths. Armed groups fighting against the MNF and the Iraqi government were responsible for grave human rights abuses, including the deliberate killing of thousands of civilians in bomb and other attacks, hostage-taking and torture. Dozens of people were sentenced to death by criminal courts and at least three were executed. Former President Saddam Hussain and seven others were brought to trial. Women and girls continued to be harassed and lived in fear as a result of the continuing lack of security.
- Amnesty Report on Iraqi Special Tribunals (13 May 2005)
Report title: "Iraqi Special Tribunal-Fair trials not guaranteed" (thorough and fairly exhaustive critique of the Iraqi Special Tribunals)
- Amnesty International Iraq pages
- Amnesty International Report 2004
- Amnesty International Report 2006: Iraq Overview (23 May 2006)
- Human Rights Watch
- Kurdish Human Rights Project
- Monitoring Net of Human Rights in Iraq
Group of Iraqi NGOs reporting on human rights violations in Iraq.
- First Periodical Report (20 Aug 2005)
Detailed allegations of human rights violations in Iraq. These cover war crimes, mass graves for those killed in fighting around Fallujah, killing of civilians, destruction of houses, the apparent murder of several dozen (named) Iraqis by Iraqi police and the US army, assassinations of professors, scientists and other professionals, violation of the rights of children, women and minorities, the use of collective punishment, and the torture and abuse of prisoners.
Includes lists of the names and details of:
- Assassinated university professors
- 143 mosques raided by US forces
- Over 650 mosque preachers and worshippers who have been arrested
- Second periodical report (20 Nov 2005)
Another detailed account of human rights violations in Iraq
- First Periodical Report (20 Aug 2005)
- Save the Children UK
- American Civil Liberties Union
- Refugees and Asylum Seekers (30 Aug 2005) (30 Aug 2005)
- New UNHCR guidelines on Iraqi asylum seekers (27 Sept 2005)
The UN refugee agency, noting a deterioration in the security situation in Iraq, has issued new guidelines regarding the return of Iraqis to their homeland. The advisory notes that despite the January 2005 elections in Iraq, authorities are not yet able to protect citizens from violent attacks, including those specifically targeting civilians in southern and central Iraq. It also says access to basic services needed for a secure and stable life is not guaranteed. The advisory also warns that premature returns could worsen tensions between residents and returnees, thereby increasing insecurity, and it thus "encourages governments to postpone the introduction of measures which are intended to promote or induce voluntary returns for persons originating from southern or central Iraq". See the UNHCR press briefing for a more extinsive summary.
- UNAMI refugees information page
Documents on refugees and internally displaced persons produced by the UN assistance mission for Iraq. Includes minutes of NGO coordination meetings. Primarily aimed at NGO officials working in Iraq.
- UK policy on deportations and leave to remain
Information about UK policy concerning the deporation of Iraqi asylum seekers.
- 1. General Resources
- Iraq – return and Section 4 support (Aug 2005)
Information on details of current UK government policy on removal access to support for Iraqi refugees and asylum seekers in the UK. Dated August 2005.
- Iraqi Federation of Refugees
- Relevant Amnesty Documents
- Iraq – return and Section 4 support (Aug 2005)
- 2. UK Government Statments
- Immigration and Nationality Directorate position statement on forced removals to Iraq (Nov 2005)
Updated position, dated November 2005, reiterating that although "government remains committed to its international obligations and will continue to give permission to stay to those foreign nationals who have a genuine need for international protection, or who otherwise qualify for temporary permission to stay in the United Kingdom due to their personal circumstances", now that Sadam Hussein has been removed from power, they feel that "there has been a clear change in the conditions in Iraq and with it, the factors to be considered when Iraqi nationals claim asylum". It also confirms that "those individuals who are due to be removed can expect to be given notice in writing about plans to remove them from the UK and they are entitled to seek legal advice about their circumstances". It makes absolutely no mention in the statement about the evaluation of the UNHCR on the return of Iraqi Nationals to Iraq, which continues to recommend that the situation in the country is still too unstable for people to return.
- Home Office Sample Letter (Aug 2005)
Sample letter from the Home Office, dated August 21, 2005, detailing UK government policy on returning failed Iraqi asylum seekers.
- Immigration and Nationality Directorate position statement on forced removals to Iraq (Nov 2005)
- 3. Statements on this UK policy by NGOs
- Refugee Council reaction to UK policy of deporting failed Iraqi asylum seekers (17 Nov 2005)
The Refugee Council feels that the Government's November 2005 decision to resume deportations of failed asylum seekers to Iraq is appalling, and urges "the government to reconsider this course of action as a matter of urgency".
- Amnesty International: News Release (26 Aug 2005)
- Human Rights Watch comments (19 Aug 2005)
- Refugee Action’s statement in response to the government’s decision to begin forced removals to Iraq. (15 Aug 2005)
- Refugee Action: initial response to government plans to force returns to Iraq (05 Aug 2005)
- Refugee Council's statement on the current situation facing Iraqi asylum seekers (05 Aug 2005)
- Refugee Council reaction to UK policy of deporting failed Iraqi asylum seekers (17 Nov 2005)
- 4. Responses from the general public and the legal community
- Mistaken deportation, December 2005 (19 Dec 2005)
In late December 2005 it has emerged that the UK mistakenly deported an Iraqi Kurdish Asylum Seeker in November, and is now looking for him. This has raised sharp criticism from a high court judge, who also condemned the Home Office's broader practices in deportation cases. The Herald, and the Telegraph also reported this story.
- Failed Iraqi asylum-seekers to be forcibly returned home (18 Nov 2005)
Article in the Independent reporting on the issue.
- Lawyers fail to halt enforced repatriations (29 Aug 2005)
- Demonstrations against deportations to Iraq (24 Aug 2005)
- Desperate measures to avoid Iraq return (24 Aug 2005)
- Criticism from the leader of the Kurdistan Democratic Party (20 Aug 2005)
- Welsh Council: Alarm over forced returns to Iraq (18 Aug 2005)
- Mistaken deportation, December 2005 (19 Dec 2005)
- 1. General Resources
- Internal Displacement Monitoring Centre
- UNHCR IRAQ page
contains links to various news stories and UN documents relating to refugees and the current suitability of the situation for the return of refugees currently outside Iraq.
- UNHCR Return Advisory Regarding Iraqi Asylum Seekers and Refugees (Sept 2004)
Report detailing the situation in Iraq in September 2004 regarding the return of Refugees and Asylum Seekers. Discussion of this report has been raised again mid-July 2005 following the announcement on the 18th of July 2005 of the United Kingdom's programme to return Iraqi refguees initially voluntarily, in preparation for forcible returns later in the year.
- UNHCR Return Advisory Regarding Iraqi Asylum Seekers and Refugees (Sept 2004)
- New UNHCR guidelines on Iraqi asylum seekers (27 Sept 2005)
- Mass graves
- Iraq: State of the Evidence (Nov 2004)
Report by Human Rights Watch claiming that the U.S.-led coalition forces failed to secure the relevant sites at the time of the overthrow of the former government, and that important evidence about the human rights abuses of the former Iraqi regime therefore has gone missing. See the full report.
- Iraq's legacy of terror - mass graves (Jan 2004)
Report by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID). Summarises the history of mass execution in Iraq, very briefly outlines past and planned US attempts to locate and exhume bodies, and includes several testimonials from survivors of mass executions in the city of Mahawil. Also available in Arabic
- Genocide in Iraq: The Anfal Campaign Against the Kurds (July 1993)
Report by Human Rights Watch about human rights abuses during the "Anfal" campaign by the Iraqi government in 1988.
- INFORCE
International Forensic Centre of Excellence for the Investigation of Genocide
- Iraq: State of the Evidence (Nov 2004)
- Press Freedom
- US Dept of Defense 'Information Operations Roadmap'
Also BBC News: 'US plans to "fight the net"'.
Written in 2003, released 2006.
- NGOs working on press freedom in Iraq
- International Freedom of Expression eXchange (IFEX)
IFEX is a global network of non-governmental organisations that monitors press freedom and freedom of expression violations in Iraq and other countries. Circulates alerts and reports on cases involving journalists killed, threatened or detained in the line of duty.
- Committee to Protect Journalists
- CPJ: 'Government instructs media to promote leadership's positions' (12 Nov 2004)
"The Committee to Protect Journalists is deeply disturbed by a new directive from Iraqi authorities that warns news organizations to reflect the government's positions in their reporting or face unspecified action. " See also Al Jazeera's reporting: "Iraq's media regulator has warned news organisations to stick to the government line on the US-led attack in Falluja or face legal action."
- CPJ: 'Government instructs media to promote leadership's positions' (12 Nov 2004)
- Reporters Without Borders
- International Freedom of Expression eXchange (IFEX)
- News reports
- BBC News: 'Arab newspaper to quit Baghdad' (16 Dec 2004)
Pan-Arab newspaper Asharq al-Awsat is temporarily closing its office in Baghdad, following threats from armed men.
- BBC News 'Iraq extends ban on al-Jazeera TV' (04 Sept 2004)
- BBC News 'Iraq orders al-Jazeera suspension' (07 Aug 2004)
- BBC News: 'Arab newspaper to quit Baghdad' (16 Dec 2004)
- US Dept of Defense 'Information Operations Roadmap'
- Prisoner Abuse and Torture
This section includes evidence of extrajudicial detentions, torture and prisoner abuse in Iraq and in the wider 'war on terror'.
- Prisoner abuse and torture in Iraq
- Soldiers' accounts of detainee abuse in Iraq (July 2006)
Based on first-hand accounts, this report finds evidence "that detainee abuse was an established and apparently authorized part of the detention and interrogation processes in Iraq for much of 2003-2005".
The report focusses on abuse of detainees in three places: Mosul Airport, 'Forward Operating Base Tiger' on the Syrian border, and under a task force based first at Camp Nema near Baghdad, then near to Balad.
- US State Department "Country Reports on Human Rights Practices" (Iraq) (08 March 2006)
Report by the US State Department and part of a set of reports on human rights in countries receiving US aid.
While the report contains details of pre-trial detention, prisoner abuse, and torture, there is no mention of abuse by US (or other foreign) troops in the report.
"A climate of extreme violence in which people were killed for political and other reasons continued. Reports increased of killings by the government or its agents that may have been politically motivated. Additionally, common criminals, insurgents, and terrorists undermined public confidence in the security apparatus by sometimes masking their identity in police and army uniforms"
"Members of sectarian militias dominated police units to varying degrees and in different parts of the country ... During the year there were a number of deaths either at police hands or at the hands of militia members and criminals wearing police uniforms."
"Insurgents and terrorists killed thousands of citizens ... Using intimidation and violence, they kidnapped and killed government officials and workers, common citizens, party activists participating in the electoral process, civil society activists, members of security forces, and members of the armed forces, as well as foreigners. "
"Criminal and politically motivated disappearances and kidnappings, including those related to the ongoing insurgency, remained a severe problem ... During the year hundreds, if not thousands, of individuals disappeared without a trace, sometimes at the hands of the police. "
"On November 13, an overcrowded MOI detention center in Baghdad was discovered. This facility, the Jadiriyah Bunker, held 169 detainees, mostly Sunnis, many of whom showed signs of torture and abuse."
"Police abuses included threats, intimidation, beatings, and suspension by the arms or legs, as well as the reported use of electric drills and cords, and the application of electric shocks. Reportedly, police threatened or, in fact, sexually abused detainees. "
Iraqi officials were critical of the report.
- AI: Beyond Abu Ghraib: detention and torture in Iraq (06 March 2006)
Recent extensive report on detention and torture in Iraq, which focusses specifically on Amnesty's "concerns about human rights abuses for which the US-led MNF is directly responsible and those which are increasingly being committed by Iraqi security forces". See also Amnesty Press Release. Includes the call to governments supplying forces to the MNF, expecially the UK and the US, to "end indefinite internment of persons in Iraq", and the call to governments supplying forces to the MNF and to the Iraqi Authorities to "provide unhindered access to all places of detention, their installations and facilities, and detainees by relevant international organizations and bodies, including the UN Special Rapporteur on torture, and by Iraqi human rights organizations".
See also BBC News report
- American Civil Liberties Union: 'Soldiers Not Held Accountable for Abuse' (24 Jan 2005)
"Government investigations into allegations of torture and abuse have been woefully inadequate," said ACLU Executive Director Anthony D. Romero. "Some of the investigations have basically whitewashed the torture and abuse. The documents that the ACLU has obtained tell a damning story of widespread torture reaching well beyond the walls of Abu Ghraib."
- American Civil Liberties Union: 'Task Force Threatened Agents Who Saw Detainee Abuse in Iraq' (07 Dec 2004)
'Documents released today by the American Civil Liberties Union reveal that a special operations task force in Iraq sought to silence Defense Intelligence Agency personnel who observed abusive interrogations and that the Department of Defense adopted questionable interrogation techniques at Guantanamo over FBI objections.'
The documents are posted at www.aclu.org/torturefoia.
- Taguba report (04 Apr 2004)
Report of a US army investigation into abuse of prisoners at Abu Ghraib, compiled by Antonio Taguba. Taguba found strong evidence for "sadistic, blatant, and wanton criminal abuses" of inmates. Widely covered by the media, notably by Seymour Hersh in the New Yorker. Also available in pdf format
- Amnesty International 'Iraq Crisis' homepage
Reports on torture and abuse of prisoners include 'AI reveals a pattern of torture and ill-treatment' and 'Pattern of brutality and cruelty - war crimes at Abu Ghraib' (7 May 2004).
- Amnesty International 'Stop Torture' campaign
- Christian Peacemaker Teams: Adopt-a-Detainee Campaign
The Christian Peacemaker Teams - one of the very few groups of internationals still maintaining a presence inside Iraq - have been running an Adopt a Detainee Campaign since Feb. 2004, pairing union, church, peace and anti-war groups around the world with individual detainees and getting them to write letters on behalf of their "adopted" detainee.
- Human Rights Watch 'US Torture and Abuse of Detainees' section
- HRW 'The New Iraq? Torture and ill-treatment of detainees in Iraqi custody' (Jan 2005)
A 94-page report documenting how unlawful arrest, long-term incommunicado detention, torture and other ill-treatment of detainees (including children) by Iraqi authorities have become routine and commonplace. There is also a press release.
- HRW 'The New Iraq? Torture and ill-treatment of detainees in Iraqi custody' (Jan 2005)
- News reports
- BBC News: 'New 'torture jail' found in Iraq' (12 Dec 2005)
625 malnourished and tortured prisoners found in a Ministry of Interior prison in Baghdad.
- BBC News: 'New 'torture jail' found in Iraq' (12 Dec 2005)
- Soldiers' accounts of detainee abuse in Iraq (July 2006)
- Prisoner abuse and torture in the wider 'war on terror'
- Lancet letter: doctors condemn forcefeeding at Guantanamo (10 March 2006)
BBC News report: "More than 250 medical experts have signed a letter condemning the US for force-feeding prisoners on hunger strike at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.
The experts, from seven nations, said physicians at the prison had to respect inmates' right to refuse treatment.
The letter, in the medical journal The Lancet said doctors who used restraints and force-feeding should be punished by their professional bodies."
- UN Guantánamo Bay report (16 Feb 2006)
Five independent investigators of the United Nations Commission on Human Rights are calling on the United States to close immediately the detention centre in Guantánamo Bay and bring all detainees before an independent and competent tribunal or release them.
- See also Press Release
- UK Law Lords rule out torture evidence (08 Dec 2005)
In a unanimous ruling, the Law Lords determined that evidence obtained through torture will not be admissible in British courts.
Plus comment from Amnesty International, Liberty, and Human Rights Watch.
- UNHCR: High Commissioner for Human Rights says total ban on torture under attack in 'war on terror' (07 Dec 2005)
'The absolute ban on torture, a cornerstone of the international human rights edifice, is becoming a casualty of the so-called "war on terror", the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights said today. '
- Amnesty International: '800 secret CIA flights in and out of Europe' (Dec 2005)
'Amnesty International has revealed that six planes used by the CIA for renditions have made some 800 flights in or out of European airspace including 50 landings at Shannon airport in the Republic of Ireland.
The information contradicts assurances given last week by the US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice to the Irish Foreign Minister Dermot Ahern, that Ireland's Shannon airport had not been used for "untoward" purposes, or as a transit point for terror suspects.'
- Liberty and JUSTICE joint submission: UK Compliance with the UN Convention Against Torture Joint Committee on Human Rights (Sept 2005)
Criticises the UK government’s proposed use of diplomatic assurances to remove foreign nationals suspected of involvement in terrorism back to countries known to practise torture.
- Amnesty International 'Stop Torture' campaign
- Human Rights Watch 'US Torture and Abuse of Detainees' section
- HRW 'The New Iraq? Torture and ill-treatment of detainees in Iraqi custody' (Jan 2005)
A 94-page report documenting how unlawful arrest, long-term incommunicado detention, torture and other ill-treatment of detainees (including children) by Iraqi authorities have become routine and commonplace. There is also a press release.
- HRW 'The New Iraq? Torture and ill-treatment of detainees in Iraqi custody' (Jan 2005)
- News reports
- The Independent: 'MI5, Camp Delta, and the story that shames Britain' (16 March 2006)
The story of Bisher al-Rawi and Jamil el-Banna, two British residents held at Guantánamo Bay after being detained in the Gambia by US agents with British collusion. This account was written by their lawyer.
Jack Straw has since agreed to intervene in the case (23rd March 2006).
The BBC reported details of telegrams which confirm British involvement (28th March 2006).
- New York Times: 'Qaeda-Iraq Link U.S. Cited Is Tied to Coercion Claim' (09 Dec 2005)
'Officials said an inmate in Egyptian custody made up details about ties between Iraq and Al Qaeda in order to escape abuse.'
- BBC News: Q&A: US abuses in Afghan jails (22 May 2005)
- BBC News: 'CIA prisoners 'tortured' in Arab jails' (08 Feb 2005)
'A former CIA official has confirmed suspicions that dozens of terror suspects have been flown to jails in Middle Eastern countries where torture is routinely practised, and without reference to courts of law.'
- Guardian 'rendition' page
See also the testimony of six men caught up in the extrajudicial 'renditions'.
- The Independent: 'MI5, Camp Delta, and the story that shames Britain' (16 March 2006)
- Lancet letter: doctors condemn forcefeeding at Guantanamo (10 March 2006)
- Prisoner abuse and torture in Iraq
- Weaponry
- Cluster Bombs
- Amnesty International: Use of cluster bombs - Civilians pay the price (02 Apr 2003)
'Amnesty International is deeply concerned about the high toll of civilian casualties and the use of cluster bombs in US military attacks in heavily populated areas.'
- Human Rights Watch: Documents on Cluster Bombs
- Amnesty International: Use of cluster bombs - Civilians pay the price (02 Apr 2003)
- Napalm and White Phosphorus
See also information on firebombs in the Briefings section.
- An interview with Sigfrido Ranucci, director of documentary 'The Hidden Massacre' (14 Dec 2005)
Interview in which the maker of the Rai News 24 documentary on White Phosphorous use in Falluja talks about the making and the content of the documentary.
- RAI documentary: 'Fallujah. La Strage Nascosta' (08 Nov 2005)
'Fallujah: the Hidden Massacre'. Documentary by Italian state broadcaster RAI detailing use of White Phosphorus in the 2004 assault on Fallujah. Uses video, photographs, and interviews with US soldiers.
There was an English report in the The Independent.
This appears to be a copy of the documentary, provided by Information Clearing House.
- Iraq Analysis Group Briefing: Firebombs in Iraq (17 Apr 2005)
Report detailing evidence for the use of a new generation napalm weapon known as the ‘MK77 firebomb’ by US forces in Iraq. There was growing concern about this weapon, as the UK is a signatory to a convention banning it on humanitarian grounds. The UK authorities had repeatedly denied that US forces were equipped with it, claiming their US allies had told them so. This was in the face of evidence including statements from the US State Department admitting MK77 use.
- Field Artillery magazine: White Phosphorus in Fallujah (March 2005)
The March edition of Field Artillery magazine, a U.S. Army publication, reveals that the U.S. military did in fact use the incendiary weapon white phosphorous in Fallujah, and not just for 'lighting' purposes, as officially claimed.
"WP proved to be an effective and versatile munition. We used it for screening missions at two breeches and, later in the fight, as a potent psychological weapon against the insurgents in trench lines and spider holes when we could not get effects on them with HE. We fired “shake and bake” missions at the insurgents, using WP to flush them out and HE to take them out."
The rest of the article (The Fight for Fallujah) is also interesting, in a horrifying kind of way.
White Phophorus was also used near Irbil, according to an article in Infantry Magazine (May/June 2004).
- Daily Mirror: 'Fallujah Napalmed' (28 Nov 2004)
'US troops are secretly using outlawed napalm gas to wipe out remaining insurgents in and around Fallujah.'
- Further report of white phosphorous use on Falluja (10 Apr 2004)
Account from North County Times reporter on assignment with a squad of U.S. troops in Falluja in April 2004, reporting the use of white phosphorus directly against combatants.
- The Independent: 'US admits it used napalm bombs in Iraq' (10 Aug 2003)
'American pilots dropped the controversial incendiary agent napalm on Iraqi troops during the advance on Baghdad.'
- The San Diego Tribune: 'Officials confirm dropping firebombs on Iraqi troops' (05 Aug 2003)
'What the Marines dropped, the spokesmen said yesterday, were "Mark 77 firebombs." They acknowledged those are incendiary devices with a function "remarkably similar" to napalm weapons. Rather than using gasoline and benzene as the fuel, the firebombs use kerosene-based jet fuel, which has a smaller concentration of benzene. '
- Federation of American Scientists - Military Analysis Network: Napalm and other fire bombs
'A fire bomb is a thin skinned container of fuel gel designed for use against dug-in troops, supply installations, wooden structures, and land convoys. The MK 77 500-pound fire bomb is the only fire bomb now in service. Fire bombs rupture on impact and spread burning fuel gel on surrounding objects. MK 13 Mod 0 igniters are used to ignite the fuel gel mixture upon impact.'
- Parliamentary Questions about firebombs
- Firebombs from RAF Fairford? (29 June 2005)
- Adam Ingram admits US used firebombs (28 June 2005)
- Adam Ingram denies US used firebombs (11 Jan 2005)
- Napalm in Fallujah? (11 Jan 2005)
- Adam Ingram denies US used firebombs (10 Jan 2005)
- Adam Ingram denies US used firebombs (06 Dec 2004)
- US Army Firebomb Procurement
- Amendment to the Solicitation (PDF File) (04 June 2004)
- US Army Federal Procurement Solicitation for more MK77 Mod 5 firebombs (PDF File) (13 Jan 2004)
From the Federal Business Opportunities Database. Also online.
- An interview with Sigfrido Ranucci, director of documentary 'The Hidden Massacre' (14 Dec 2005)
- Cluster Bombs