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Utopia Talk / Politics / five questions
swordtail
Anarchist Prime
Mon Feb 12 21:12:47


George Monbiot (@GeorgeMonbiot ) has called on @Tim_Hayward_ and @PiersRobinson1 to answer five questions raised here by a certain @tettodoro:





5 Questions for “Professors Against White Helmets”
For the last year the Civil defence organisation that provides search and rescue help to Syrian opposition communities under attack from the Syrian regime and its allies – known as the White Helmet…
https://magpie68.wordpress.com/2018/02/09/5-questions-for-professors-against-white-helmets/
. They in turn have invited him to debate the question in a proper forum.


After a certain amount of preliminary ‘disruptive intercourse’ @tettodoro comes to his five questions, which I consider in the rest of this thread:

http://threadreaderapp.com/thread/963084453789814785.html
jergul
large member
Tue Feb 13 03:11:29
The questions sort of bypass the main issue:

Is the white helmet organization a belligerent in the conflict, or is it not?

Hot Rod
Revved Up
Tue Feb 13 03:55:55

No, I don't think so. They are like the military medics in combat, their only concern is the wounded. They don't even carry a weapon.

Of course, the bad guys have no compunction against shooting the medics. That way more of the good guys die because there is no one to minister to them if you kill or wound the medics.

jergul
large member
Tue Feb 13 04:49:23
Combat/field medics are belligerents, but have protected status while doing specific duties.

That is true of white helmets too. Double tapping a site would be illegal because the intention would be to harm personnel performing specific duties that are protected.

This is true of terrorists too. Its illegal to bomb them when they are doing rescue work.

But the question was if white helmets is a belligerent organization.

It would be by conventional western standards. It produces a hell of a lot of propaganda and its members have documented close connections to combat groups.

US citizens have been droned by the US government for less.
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