As the civilian death toll in Iraq rises with the most recent killings in Hilla, south of Baghdad, gruesome pictures have hit the airwaves and the Internet, showing the faces of the "dozens of smashed corpses" of women and children that the Red Cross spokesman Roland Huguenin-Benjamin has described as lying lifeless in Hilla hospital. These are images that no one can bear to see, no matter what our personal feelings may be about the war. The latest round of coalition bombing comes only a day after the tragic massacre of women and children at an Iraqi checkpoint, prompting a US Army captain to shout at his platoon: "You just killed (expletive) a family because you didn't fire a warning shot soon enough!"

As the casualties mount, it is clear that this has become a war of pictures and stories that American networks and Arab and European news agencies are frantically churning out, each attempting to discredit the other. An appropriate and sincere US response to these civilian casualties is critical and the time for that response is now. We must show the world that we do care for these innocent lives, by calling for independent investigations and humanitarian assistance for the victims and their families. The US must not wait for criticism or public embarrassment to snowball before it takes action. Read more...