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Editorial: On Falluja; U.S.-France The Guardian, London April 30 Convincing Iraqis that U.S. soldiers are there to help them will be all the more difficult after the shocking events in Falluja, west of Baghdad. Preventing already widespread popular opposition to the American military presence turning into concerted armed resistance will also be increasingly problematic unless the U.S. army can explain why it was justified in opening fire on a crowd comprising a large number of children and teenagers, killing at least 13 and wounding 75. ... Even though the war is over, U.S. soldiers continue to kill Iraqi civilians almost every day, for a variety of reasons. But Falluja's tragedy is of a different order of magnitude. To prevent more such disastrous incidents and stop the security situation deteriorating further, an inquiry must be urgently held, preferably with U.N. oversight and with reference to the Geneva conventions governing the conduct of occupying forces. For reasons of law, morality and self-interest, our relentlessly self-righteous government has a clear obligation to demand that its ally comply. Meanwhile, 82nd Airborne units should be withdrawn from Falluja. If necessary, they could be replaced by better-disciplined British troops. Le Figaro, Paris May 7 There is no older strategic alliance than that of the United States and France. Relations between these two friends of 230 years have rarely been as damaged as they are today. Is this reasonable? The answer is no. The two nations share the same values, the same culture, the same economic interests. ... It would be ridiculous to fall out over a question, Iraq, that is peripheral compared to the vital interests of our countries. It is too early to judge the results of the Anglo-American invasion of Iraq. ... France's job is to do everything so that the Americans succeed, because the interest of the entire West is at stake. ... The urgency is to re-establish relations ... with our American allies. This means not responding to anti-French excesses from the hawks at the Pentagon, who don't represent eternal America. It means following without rest trans-Atlantic cooperation in the fight against terrorism. ... LINKS: DAILY TIDINGS: Main | News | Sports | Business | Obituaries | Opinion | Columnists | AP News | Subscribe | Archives | Weather | Classifieds | Contact Us | Privacy REVELS: Main | Calendar | Dining | Movies | T.V. OTHER: Road Cams Copyright 2003 Ashland Daily Tidings 541.482.3456. 1661 Siskiyou Blvd., Ashland, OR 97520. Ottaway Newspapers, Inc. - Advertisers -