On War
Josh Rushing on how conflicts shape societies and consciences around the world.
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As the US and its allies draw up timetables for troop withdrawals from Iraq and violence continues across Afghanistan, Al Jazeera’s Josh Rushing begins a new six-part series On War.
A former US marine and spokesman for Centcom, Rushing examines how 9/11 has changed the face of modern warfare provoking eight years of conflict in the Middle East.
On War also looks beyond the many wars currently being fought across the globe, beyond the last war and beyond the next war in an attempt to understand war as a force that blights the planet like drought, poverty or disease.
Rushing visited battlefields past and present in Southeast Asia, the Middle East and South America to witness the legacy of conflict and discover how war has become big business.
| Profit and Loss |
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In the final part of On war, Josh visits the town of Anniston in the US state of Alabama. The town has prospered from industrial investment from the US military. Yet this success has also come at a price. Approximately a qaurter of all US fatalities in the war in Iraq come from this south eastern corner of the country. Al Jazeera looks at the blessing and burden conflict bestows on one American town. |
| Legacy of War |
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Watch part two |
Laos is the most bombed country in history. Between 1966 and 1973, pilots in the US’ “Secret War” dropped loads of anti-personnel cluster bombs and massive ordnance at a rate of every eight minuteswith the aim of disrupting the Ho Chi Minh trail. We use Laos as a prime example of the legacy of war and show how the saturation of unexploded ordnance has created ongoing poverty and danger in this tiny country. Josh finds out how the bombs are still blighting Laos and joins efforts to clear the country of mines. |
Legacy of War, can be seen from Monday January 19 at the following times GMT:
Monday: 1230; Tuesday: 0330, 1400; Wednesday: 0630, 1900; Thursday: 0130, 1030; Friday: 0330, 1000, 1430; Saturday: 1730; Sunday: 0430, 2030
| Chasing Shining Path |
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The Shining Path really is active once more. The formerly idealistic Maoist guerrilla force now models itself on Colombia’s Farc. It supports its operations by drug trafficking. And it is working. Josh Rushing travels to Peru to track down the group, heading to the heart of the country’s cocaine industry. Read more… |
| Merchants of War |
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The US-led “war on terror”, as well as causing controversy and opposition, has generated big business for defence companies. Josh visits Sofex, the world’s biggest arms exposition. He then visits one US-controlled prison in Iraq to see how these new weapons of mass detention are deployed. Read more… |
| My Class of 2000 |
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Josh Rushing was a member of the first class of marine officers in the new millennium to graduate from the basic training school in Quantico, Virginia. Eight years of war following 9/11 has changed the graduates’ lives forever and Rushing looked up six of his former classmates to see how they have fared. |
| Heart of Darkness |
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The My Lai massacre in Vietnam has long been considered the worst killing of civilians by US soldiers and has been the subject of much soul searching over the years. Al Jazeera goes to the hamlet, called Pinkville by the soldiers, speaks to survivors and veterans exploring how the region has and has not changed. Read more… |