Official: Pentagon allows coverage of war coffins

The Pentagon lifted its ban Thursday on media coverage of coffins of war victims as they arrive at Dover Air Force Base in Delaware.
The coverage must be approved by the victims' families, however.
Advocates of opening the base to coverage say the unmarked coffins make it impossible to identify specific remains.
Defense Secretary Robert Gates is to announce the change at a news conference at 2 p.m. ET, the senior official said. He ordered a review after President Obama asked for more information on the long-standing policy.
Though the Defense Department won't confirm it, it is widely accepted that the ban began after the December 1989 U.S. invasion of Panama, which deposed dictator Manuel Noriega.
After a news conference held by President George H.W. Bush, his press secretary made a humorous comment, causing the president and reporters to laugh.
At the same time, viewers were watching coffins of the first casualties from the invasion being unloaded at Dover.

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A Soldier Speaks: As Iraq Casualties Mount, So Do the Stories We Must Tell

By Tara Lohan, AlterNet. Posted March 19, 2007.

Spc. Jamaal Addison's mother describes him as an angel. He died on the fourth day of the Iraq war at the age of 22. "He was a hero," she said. "But he was a hero long before he ever got killed in this war."

Her words could also speak for the thousands of others killed in the invasion and occupation of Iraq that began four years ago today. Jamaal's story is one of many captured by a new, on-line video project called Iraq Veterans Memorial -- the latest from director Robert Greenwald and the folks at Brave New Films. [WATCH]

"While making Iraq for Sale, we were inspired and moved by the soldiers we interviewed. They were young, very smart and extremely patriotic. When we realized the fourth anniversary of the war was approaching we wanted to do something to honor people like them who were not lucky enough to return home," said Tracy Fleischman of Brave New Films.

"We were inspired by the Vietnam Memorial and the AIDS quilt -- which both bring tremendous loss of life to a human scale. We decided to use our medium -- film -- to create something similar. It was also important to us that politics not be a part of this project; we simply wanted to honor these young men and women and create something people with varying opinions could come together around."

The videos provide a human face, not just of those who have been killed, but of the people they left behind -- brothers and sisters, parents, children, friends, lovers, cousins, comrades. The men and women who were killed were more than service members -- in the words of those who loved them -- they were leaders, ambassadors, peacemakers, superheroes, poets, artists, athletes, dreamers, and jokers.

Source: AlterNet: War on Iraq: A Soldier Speaks: As Iraq Casualties Mount, So Do the Stories We Must Tell

Technorati tags: soldiers, Iraq, Iraq war, War on Iraq, war, troops, Iraq Veteran's Memorial

Iraq Veterans Memorial

The Iraq Veterans Memorial is an online war memorial that honors the members of the U.S. armed forces who have lost their lives serving in the Iraq War. The Memorial is a collection of video memories from family, friends, military colleagues, and co-workers of those that have fallen.

Source: Iraq Veterans Memorial

Technorati tags: Iraq, Iraq Veteran's Memorial, soldiers, Veterans, Iraq War, War on Iraq, activism, troops

Iraq Veterans Memorial

March 19th marks the 4th year of the war in Iraq.

The Iraq Veterans Memorial is being made by the friends and family members of the servicemen and women who have lost their lives in the war. It will be an ongoing project where people can add video memories on youtube.

Contribute your video memory

The Memorial will be unveiled nationally and go live across the internet on March 17th. Over 400 websites will be hosting the Memorial.

You may just want to view the Memorial on your computer at home. But we're also coordinating
public unveiling events for the weekend of March 17th, 18th and 19th. We'll be listing the events here so check back to find one near you.

If you would like to participate in the unveiling of the memorial or host an unveiling yourself please contact us.
Host the memorial on your website

A project of the Brave New Foundation / Email: info@iraqmemorial.org

Source: Iraq Veterans Memorial

Technorati tags: Iraq, Iraq Veteran's Memorial, soldiers, Iraq war, opinion, video, media