Gay Dutch soldiers responsible for Srebrenica massacre says US general

[alienlovechild 75]

The Dutch government condemned the comments by Gen John Sheehan, a former Nato commander and senior marine officer, as outrageous.

Gen Sheehan made the remarks at a Senate hearing where he argued against plans by President Barack Obama to end a ban on allowing gays to serve openly in the US military.

Paucity of equipment hampers training, says decorated officer Gen Sheehan said that after the end of the Cold War, European militaries changed and concluded "there was no longer a need for an active combat capability."

He said this process included "open homosexuality" which resulted in "a focus on peacekeeping operations because they did not believe the Germans were going to attack again or the Soviets were coming back."

"The case in point that I'm referring to is when the Dutch were required to defend Srebrenica against the Serbs," he said, referring to the UN peacekeeping force deployed to protect Bosnian Muslim civilians.

"The battalion was understrength, poorly led, and the Serbs came into town, handcuffed the soldiers to the telephone polls, marched the Muslims off and executed them."

Carl Levin, the chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, pressed him to clarify his comments.

"Did the Dutch leaders tell you it (the fall of Srebrenica) was because there were gay soldiers there?" asked an incredulous Levin.

"Yes," Sheehan said and added: "They included that as part of the problem."

Gen Sheehan, who retired from the military in 1997, said he had been told that by the former chief of staff of the Dutch army.

Mr Levin vehemently rejected Sheehan's allegation, saying that drawing a connection between the massacre at Srebrenica and gays in the Dutch military was "totally off-target".

The failure of the Dutch UN troops to fend off an attack by Bosnian Serb forces had "nothing to do with sexual orientation" but was related to "their training and the rules of engagement," Mr Levin said.

The Dutch government angrily rejected the claim.

"It is astonishing that a man of his stature can utter such complete nonsense," said Roger van de Wetering, the Dutch defence ministry spokesman. "I have never heard of a single statement by a Dutch political or military leader that drew a link between the fall of the enclave and the fact that there were Dutch homosexual soldiers."

Nearly 8,000 Bosnian Muslim men and boys were killed after Serb forces captured the eastern town on July 11 1995, in the worst massacre in Europe since World War II.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/northamerica/usa/7478738/Gay-Dutch-soldiers-responsible-for-Srebrenica-massacre-says-US-general.html

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"It is astonishing that a man of his stature can utter such complete nonsense," said Roger van de Wetering, the Dutch defence ministry spokesman.

No, it really isn't astonishing at all to anyone familiar with how rhetoric is practiced this side of the Atlantic

[Peikko 1,575]

No, it really isn't astonishing at all to anyone familiar with how rhetoric is practiced this side of the Atlantic

Sadly, that seems to be the truth of it.

[The_Dude 1,142]

Sadly, that seems to be the truth of it.

This does seem to be a new low in the rhetoric battle against lifting the ban.

[Trumplestiltskin 5,791]

Classy

[Mr. Big Dog 10,747]

Makes you wonder whether the good General participates in these protests, doesn't it?

[scandal 951]

Makes you wonder whether the good General participates in these protests, doesn't it?

It's good that God hates fags - it's high time He quit smoking. Awful habit, really.