http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/middle_east/5039420.stm New 'Iraq massacre' tape emerges The BBC has uncovered new video evidence that US forces may have been responsible for the deliberate killing of 11 innocent Iraqi civilians. The video appears to challenge the US military's account of events that took place in the town of Ishaqi in March. The US said at the time four people died during a military operation, but Iraqi police claimed that US troops had deliberately shot the 11 people. A spokesman for US forces in Iraq told the BBC an inquiry was under way. The new evidence comes in the wake of the alleged massacre in Haditha, where US marines are suspected of killing up to 24 Iraqi civilians in November 2005 and covering up the deaths. The incident is being investigated by the Pentagon. The US military has announced that coalition troops in Iraq are to have ethical training following the furore surrounding the alleged killings. For the next 30 days, they would receive lessons in "core warrior values", a military statement said. The news of ethical training for US-led troops is likely to be greeted with cynicism by many Iraqis, the BBC's Ian Pannell in Baghdad says, as the troops have long been accused of deliberately targeting civilians. Cross-checked The video pictures obtained by the BBC appear to contradict the US account of the events in Ishaqi, about 100km (60 miles) north of Baghdad, on 15 March 2006. The US authorities said they were involved in a firefight after a tip-off that an al-Qaeda supporter was visiting the house. According to the Americans, the building collapsed under heavy fire killing four people - a suspect, two women and a child. But a report filed by Iraqi police accused US troops of rounding up and deliberately shooting 11 people in the house, including five children and four women, before blowing up the building. The video tape obtained by the BBC shows a number of dead adults and children at the site with what our world affairs editor John Simpson says were clearly gunshot wounds. The pictures came from a hardline Sunni group opposed to coalition forces. It has been cross-checked with other images taken at the time of events and is believed to be genuine, the BBC's Ian Pannell in Baghdad says.
US forces also killed 2 Iraqi women...one of which was pregnant and being rushed to the hospital: http://today.reuters.com/News/CrisesArticle.aspx?storyId=DAH138765 Also, Iraq's new ambassador to the US said yesterday US forces cold-bloodedly shot and killed his cousin last year in Haditha. It is the same town where marines are alleged to have gone on a rampage, killing 24 civilians. Samir Shakir al-Sumaidaie’s accusations — aired just hours after President George Bush welcomed him at the White House — came as the US military faced growing pressure to complete its investigation into the Haditha deaths: http://media.putfile.com/IRAQ-AMBASSADOR
Prepare for a massive sh!tstorm backlash. I just don't know what to say anymore -- it's just one thing after another. The pressure these poor soldiers are dealing with day to day -- the pressure the Iraqi civilians are dealing with everyday... War is hell.
That's some distrubing information. The Iraqi people will not tolerate this information coming to light.
My girlfriend is Vietnamese and her dad led troops for S.Vietnam in the war so I've been reading a lot about the war and history of the country. I recently read about some of the horrible things to come out of it like Agent Orange, the use of Napalm and the Mai Ly massacre. The pictures from those incidents are the most disgusting things I've ever seen in my life. F*$@ing civilians. Women and children. How could you shoot an infant? I dont even want to think that things like that happening now in present day. Savages do that **** and anyone representing our country like that should be strung up. Anyone defending actions like this for the sake of politics are souless bastards. I hope at the very least least it was just an accident. Even then, what kind of training and leadership are we sending our guys in there with? Disgusting situation.
I don't buy this one bit. It's amazing how quick some of you are to discount the actual troops' version of the story. CreepyFloyd and Azadre's positions don't surprise me in the least.
gwayneco is probably the least likely to have an Iraqi girlfriend. but anyway warishellwarishellwarishellwarishellwarishellwarishelllalalalalalasupportthetroopswarishellwarishellwarishellIsupportmurdererswarishellwarishellwarishell...
So American soldiers are all murderers? I may have to change my previously stated opposition to the "ignore list."
The BBC has a crappy track record on being factual regarding Iraq news, also. Don't forget about old Andrew Gilligan who had to resign for reporting information that he knew was wrong about Iraq. http://www.cnn.com/2004/WORLD/europe/01/30/britain.gilligan/index.html Their facade of integrity over at the BBC is long gone. They're a bunch of partisan hacks just like the Mirror, the Guardian, the NY Times, etc.
You think the Iraqis with their advanced technology faked the video? Did you read the article? It's amazing that you'd dismiss this. There's no possibility that we're committing attrocities over there? None at all? Do you not care? If its true, should it be allowed?
If these charges are true, the offenders will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law. That's what separates the USA from other countries and bodies such as the UN.
Many Iraqis are numb to the news. For them it's just every day life under occupation. Is this the first time the U.S. is actually doing the body count, btw?
That's not the issue. I don't think Iraqi civilians give a rats ass whether the soldiers are prosecuted afer the fact. They want them to stop killing their civilians. If you're trying to win a battle for the "hearts and minds", this crap coming out over and over doesn't help. And bigtexxx, based on what happened at Abu Gharib and the other massacre and the subsequent "official versions" that the military tried to put out there, you'd be stupid not to take this seriously.
Any position taken by CreepyFloyd should be discounted ~ i've never been impressed with his ideas - whatever the guise he happens to be taking.
Where does he say that? If we (soldiers representing us) are killing civilians, then they are in fact murderers and cowards.
Did you read the article, or just the headline? The women were killed when the taxi they were in drove into a clearly marked restricted area and then refused to stop when signalled. They are supposed to disable the vehicle in that circumstance, because that is what suicide car bombers do. That it happened to be two women heading to a maternity hospital is tragic, but the troops in this case did nothing wrong.
Oh, I agree with you 100% on that. What I said doesn't excuse what happened at all (at least I don't think it does).
if anything does happen to them at all, it'll be a slap on the wrist compared to the punishment they should actually receieve....so no, the us is no different than the israeli regime or any other country in this regards
