Brussels, 02/09/2013 (Agence Europe) - Vice-President of the European Parliament and head of the International Committee in Search of Justice, Alejo Vidal-Quadras (EPP, Spain), has called for the resignation of High Representative of the EU for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Catherine Ashton following the attack on Camp Ashraf by Iraqi forces on 31 August and 1 September. Stating that Ashton “has been incapable of taking action” to assure the security of the camp's residents, Vidal-Quadras believed Ashton “equally responsible for this crime because of her incompetence and her lack of sensitivity when human rights are violated. If she had a minimum of decency, she should resign immediately”. “We call on President Obama, Secretary General Ban Ki-moon and the EU for immediate intervention to prevent further murders (…). Silence and inaction at this stage will just be seen as a green light to bloodshed”, he added.
In the view of the leader of the European Parliament's delegation for relations with Iraq, Struan Stevenson (ECR, UK), this “brutal massacre of unarmed civilians in Camp Ashraf” was as “inevitable as it was predictable”. “As Ban Ki-moon, Ashton and Obama wring their hands in feeble impotence, the murder of innocent people will continue apace”, he added.
France and UK condemn attack. UK Parliamentary Under Secretary of State Alistair Burt, like French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius, condemned the violence, called for an independent, in-depth and transparent inquiry, and recalled that it is up to the Iraqi authorities to ensure the security of the residents. The US also condemned the attack.
At least 52 people were killed and a dozen disappeared in this attack on Camp Ashraf which housed around 100 people, according to the People's Mujahedin. Three soldiers were killed and four others wounded, according to the authorities. Iraq's Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki has ordered a committee of inquiry to be set up, which is to work alongside the UN committee. (CG/transl.fl)