I was doing a little research on the topic of casualty lists under Saddam versus post Saddam and discovered a group about whom I can't seem to find any information: The Documental Centre for Human Rights in Iraq.
Why are they important? Well, when one attempts to make the assessment of how many people died under Saddam's regime, you will find this group's ink fresh under the topic of how many were killed under Saddam's rule.
In fact, they're the only group making the claim of, for instance, over 600,000 dead under Saddam, not tied to the Kurds or the Iran/Iraq war. This is the statement that you will undoubtedly encounter:
"The Documental Centre for Human Rights in Iraq has compiled documentation on over 600,000 civilian executions in Iraq. Human Rights Watch reports that in one operation alone, the Anfal, Saddam killed 100,000 Kurdish Iraqis. Another 500,000 are estimated to have died in Saddam's needless war with Iran. Coldly taken as a daily average for the 24 years of Saddam's reign, these numbers give us a horrifying picture of between 70 and 125 civilian deaths per day for every one of Saddam's 8,000-odd days in power"
Here are some reasons I am suspicious about this group:
o We encouraged and supplied the arms and intel to Saddam for the Iran war. Iraq was our proxy. The report would have us believe Saddam attacked and innocent Iran.
o The Kurds were gassed because they rose up against Saddam under our imporing after the first gulf war. We didn't support them, and they were brutally shut down.
o These guys are the only group with the "600,000 executions" under Saddam.
So...does anyone know about this group? Right now, it seems as if they are the information wing of the Iraqi National Congress (Achmed Chalabi). Their statistics are splattered all over the information war between the pro-bush people and the opposition to the war.
I smell a rat.