[In the book "Winter Soldier Iraq and Afghanistan: Eyewitness Accounts of the Occupation,"] there is much testimony on the dehumanisation of the Iraqi people as well.
Brian Casler, a corporal in the Marines, spoke to some of this that he witnessed during the invasion of Iraq. "But on these convoys, I saw marines defecate into MRE bags or urinate in bottles and throw them at children on the side of the road," he stated.
Numerous accounts from soldiers include the prevalence of degrading terms for Iraqis, such as "hajis," "towel-heads" and "sand-niggers".
Scott Ewing, who served in Iraq from 2005-2006, admitted on one panel that units intentionally gave candy to Iraqi children for reasons other than "winning hearts and minds".
"There was also another motive," Ewing said, "If the kids were around our vehicles, the bad guys wouldn't attack. We used the kids as human shields."
[From a review by Dahr Jamail, IPS]
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