I WAS shocked by the irony of the situation re the human shield Antionette McCormick and the unwelcome attentions of her guard on her journey from Baghdad to Jordan (April 1)

I am sure that the young girls that were sent from their school every week to entertain Saddam Hussein's son, Uday, would understand and sympathise with her plight.

However they were not as fortunate. If they rejected his advances, they were strung up by their thumbs and were beaten on the soles of their bare feet until they complied. They were then made to dance and strip for Uday and his guards before having sex forced upon them.

Why have the human shields waited until now to object? Surely they should have been marching through the Iraqi streets for the past 30 years calling for the human rights of the people of Iraq.

Iraq does not need the help of foreign human shields. Saddam has thousands of his own citizens to use.

Wendy Cuthbert

Wansbeck,

York.

Updated: 10:47 Friday, April 04, 2003