May 27, 2003
Russell Mokhiber: Ari, there is a new documentary film by an Irish journalist, Jamie Doran. He alleges -
Ari Fleischer: I haven't seen it.
Mokhiber: Well, let me tell you about it. He alleges U.S. military involvement in a massacre of 3,000 Taliban prisoners in Afghanistan. He says that the 3,000 prisoners were forced into sealed containers and loaded onto trucks for transport to Sheberghan prison. When the prisoners began shouting for air, U.S. allied Afghan soldiers fired directly into the truck, killing many of them. Then, witnesses in the film said that when the trucks arrived and soldiers opened the containers, most of the people inside were dead. U.S. special forces redirected -
Fleischer: And your question is?
Mokhiber: Well, you said you hadn't seen it, so I'm giving you some background. One more thing - U.S. special forces redirected the containers carrying the dead into the desert and stood by as survivors were shot and buried.
Fleischer: I think I understand your movie review.
Mokhiber: And there is a mass grave of 3,000 Taliban prisoners. Question - does the President know about this massacre? Is he ordering an investigation?
Fleischer: Number one, I would not use a movie as a basis to make assumptions about what is right and what is wrong. If your question is about a factual matter in Afghanistan dealing with military actions, that is a question you should address to the Pentagon. I'm not aware of any such -
Mokhiber: Is the President aware of it?
Fleischer: I don't know if he is aware of this movie or not - I would doubt it.
Join Us: News for people demanding a better world
Common Dreams is powered by optimists who believe in the power of informed and engaged citizens to ignite and enact change to make the world a better place. We're hundreds of thousands strong, but every single supporter makes the difference. Your contribution supports this bold media model—free, independent, and dedicated to reporting the facts every day. Stand with us in the fight for economic equality, social justice, human rights, and a more sustainable future. As a people-powered nonprofit news outlet, we cover the issues the corporate media never will. Join with us today! |
Our work is licensed under Creative Commons (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0). Feel free to republish and share widely.
Russell Mokhiber
Russell Mokhiber is editor of the Washington, D.C.-based Corporate Crime Reporter. He is also founder of singlepayeraction.org, and editor of the website Morgan County USA.
Russell Mokhiber: Ari, there is a new documentary film by an Irish journalist, Jamie Doran. He alleges -
Ari Fleischer: I haven't seen it.
Mokhiber: Well, let me tell you about it. He alleges U.S. military involvement in a massacre of 3,000 Taliban prisoners in Afghanistan. He says that the 3,000 prisoners were forced into sealed containers and loaded onto trucks for transport to Sheberghan prison. When the prisoners began shouting for air, U.S. allied Afghan soldiers fired directly into the truck, killing many of them. Then, witnesses in the film said that when the trucks arrived and soldiers opened the containers, most of the people inside were dead. U.S. special forces redirected -
Fleischer: And your question is?
Mokhiber: Well, you said you hadn't seen it, so I'm giving you some background. One more thing - U.S. special forces redirected the containers carrying the dead into the desert and stood by as survivors were shot and buried.
Fleischer: I think I understand your movie review.
Mokhiber: And there is a mass grave of 3,000 Taliban prisoners. Question - does the President know about this massacre? Is he ordering an investigation?
Fleischer: Number one, I would not use a movie as a basis to make assumptions about what is right and what is wrong. If your question is about a factual matter in Afghanistan dealing with military actions, that is a question you should address to the Pentagon. I'm not aware of any such -
Mokhiber: Is the President aware of it?
Fleischer: I don't know if he is aware of this movie or not - I would doubt it.
Russell Mokhiber
Russell Mokhiber is editor of the Washington, D.C.-based Corporate Crime Reporter. He is also founder of singlepayeraction.org, and editor of the website Morgan County USA.
Russell Mokhiber: Ari, there is a new documentary film by an Irish journalist, Jamie Doran. He alleges -
Ari Fleischer: I haven't seen it.
Mokhiber: Well, let me tell you about it. He alleges U.S. military involvement in a massacre of 3,000 Taliban prisoners in Afghanistan. He says that the 3,000 prisoners were forced into sealed containers and loaded onto trucks for transport to Sheberghan prison. When the prisoners began shouting for air, U.S. allied Afghan soldiers fired directly into the truck, killing many of them. Then, witnesses in the film said that when the trucks arrived and soldiers opened the containers, most of the people inside were dead. U.S. special forces redirected -
Fleischer: And your question is?
Mokhiber: Well, you said you hadn't seen it, so I'm giving you some background. One more thing - U.S. special forces redirected the containers carrying the dead into the desert and stood by as survivors were shot and buried.
Fleischer: I think I understand your movie review.
Mokhiber: And there is a mass grave of 3,000 Taliban prisoners. Question - does the President know about this massacre? Is he ordering an investigation?
Fleischer: Number one, I would not use a movie as a basis to make assumptions about what is right and what is wrong. If your question is about a factual matter in Afghanistan dealing with military actions, that is a question you should address to the Pentagon. I'm not aware of any such -
Mokhiber: Is the President aware of it?
Fleischer: I don't know if he is aware of this movie or not - I would doubt it.
We've had enough. The 1% own and operate the corporate media. They are doing everything they can to defend the status quo, squash dissent and protect the wealthy and the powerful. The Common Dreams media model is different. We cover the news that matters to the 99%. Our mission? To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. How? Nonprofit. Independent. Reader-supported. Free to read. Free to republish. Free to share. With no advertising. No paywalls. No selling of your data. Thousands of small donations fund our newsroom and allow us to continue publishing. Can you chip in? We can't do it without you. Thank you.