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| | International Humanitarian Law Issues In A Potential War In I raq (Human Rights Watch Briefing Paper, February 20, 2003) |
 | | These include the use of human shields, the use of weapons of mass destruction, concerns about urban combat, attacks on civilian morale, attacks on dual-use facilities, targeting decisions (target identification and proportionality), the use of certain conventional weapons, the duties of an occupying power, and transparency in the conduct of military operations. |
 | | The use of civilians, including a state’s own citizens, as human shields to protect military objectives from attack is a violation of international humanitarian law amounting to a war crime. |
 | | This duty requires the United States and its allies to use their own personnel to secure public order as they advance through the country and be prepared to mobilize and adequately train local military, and eventually police, personnel for such responsibilities. |
| www.hrw.org /backgrounder/arms/iraq0202003.htm (7301 words) |
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