Return to Sorman -- Anatomy of a NATO War Crime by Franklin Lamb

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http://www.uruknet.info/?s1=1&p=83990&s2=18

EXCERPT:

Later, as I learned more about Khaled’s family and saw their most expressive and revealing photos, I came to believe that with respect to the wanton criminal aggression that caused thousands of needless deaths of innocents over the period of nearly nine months, that Najia, Safa, Salam, Khaleda, and Khweldi, and the others slaughtered at Sorman, are forever iconic representatives of all the innocent civilians who were slaughtered in Libya since March 2011.

During my recent visit to Sorman, I stood at the same location as last June. I surveyed the area and then approached the graves of Najia, Safa, Salam, Khaleda, and Khweldi.  In the cold darkness with the piles of rubble still in place it was eerie.

I knelt close, felt a strange source of warmth and looked over my shoulder. I whispered in the silent night that I had a message from your loving Husband, Father, Uncle and Nephew that he asked me to deliver to you.

I read to them the message entrusted to me. And I left a copy in Arabic, pinned to a bouquet of flowers. The message read:

"Please say a very big hello to them and tell them I am coming.  Please tell them I won’t leave you alone.  And I miss each of you so very much.And please write them each a note.  Najia, Safa, Salam, Khaleda, and Khweldi.Franklin, Tell them, "You are my life. You are my love. I miss you very, very much. Life without you is so painful, so hard and completely empty. I won’t stay and live away from you. I promise.    I’ll return and be close to you. Baba will be back. I love you."

As I made my way back to the main road in search of a taxi, a militiaman stopped me and interrogated me about why I was there, confiscated my camera and ordered me to leave the area at once.

I paused for a moment and looked back toward what had been a loving family home, a petting zoo and bird sanctuary that had delighted the children in this neighborhood.

A little boy and girl, perhaps siblings, maybe six or seven years old, approached me with their Ethiopian nanny and asked: "Wien, (where is) Khaleda? Wien Khweldi?  metta yargeoun ila Al Bayt (when will they come home?)  "When will they come home?"

Unable to speak, I kissed and patted their heads and continued on my way.
Khaled K. Al-Hamedi is strong, deeply religious, and fatalistic. He has pledged to family and friends around the world that he will continue his work with the International Organization for Peace, Care & Relief in spite of the life shattering loss of his loved ones. An honorable family, a peaceful and welcoming town, a devastated country, and a shocked and angry international community demand justice from those who sent 'Unified Protector’ and NATO’s no-fly zone to destroy Libya in order to "protect the civilian population."