Are Some Violations of International Law OK?
Re “Make Iraqis Pay for Acts of ‘Perfidy,’ ” by Neal Richardson and Spencer Crona, Commentary, April 8: So, Iraqis ought to pay for suicide bombings, feigning surrender and other acts of “perfidy” directed against invading U.S. and British troops, inasmuch as such acts violate international law. Such a suggestion should make Prime Minister Tony Blair and President Bush shudder. The U.S.-UK invasion of Iraq is clearly a violation of international law. It would seem, then, that one of the casualties of the war against Iraq is that neither the U.S. nor the UK is in a position to appeal to breaking international law as grounds for condemning the acts of others.
But perhaps laws are merely laws, and there are times when one cannot be blamed for breaking them. Well, then, is it OK to break them for the sake of “preemptive” acts of aggression against other nations but not OK to break them for the sake of defending your nation against armed aggression by others?
Stephen Simon
Claremont
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Hello? Mr. Richardson and Mr. Crona, are you there? We attacked them. Did you miss that detail? So your comments on how they fight back are misdirected.
Ann Bourman
Los Angeles
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