US Admits Killing Arab Journalist in Iraq

[chlamor]

US admits killing Arab journalists in Iraq

By Aljazeera 

03/29/05 - - The US military has acknowledged it was responsible for killing two journalists working for Dubai-based satellite channel al-Arabiya who were shot close to a checkpoint in the Iraqi capital earlier this month. 

Al-Arabiya cameraman Ali Abd al-Aziz died on 18 March from a gunshot wound to the head. Correspondent Ali al-Khatib died from his wounds in hospital the next day. Both were Iraqis. 

Colleagues said US troops fired on their car near a checkpoint in central Baghdad. The US military initially said it was unlikely its bullets had killed them. On Monday, a US military official said an investigation into the deaths showed troops were responsible, but had acted "within the rules of engagement". 

US soldiers were aiming at a different car, a white Volvo that had driven through the checkpoint at high speed, the investigation said. Al-Arabiya's grey Kia car was 50m to 150m down the road, trying to turn when it was accidentally hit, the military said. 

"The investigation concluded that no soldiers fired intentionally at the Kia," the US military said in a statement. 

http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article8396.htm

[UpInArms]

1. PENTAGON THREATENS TO KILL INDEPENDENT REPORTERS IN IRAQ

http://www.gulufuture.com/news/kate_adie030310.htm

The Pentagon has threatened to fire on the satellite uplink positions of independent journalists in Iraq, according to veteran BBC war correspondent, Kate Adie. In an interview with Irish radio, Ms. Adie said that questioned about the consequences of such potentially fatal actions, a senior Pentagon officer had said: "Who cares.. ..They've been warned."

According to Ms. Adie, who twelve years ago covered the last Gulf War, the Pentagon attitude is: "entirely hostile to the the free spread of information."

"I am enormously pessimistic of the chance of decent on-the-spot reporting, as the war occurs," she told Irish national broadcaster, Tom McGurk on the RTE1 Radio "Sunday Show."

...more...

the rules of engagement :(

[leftchick]

6. thanks for the reminder UIA!

The filthy pentagon liars are intentionally targeting any and all journalists who are not "embedded" and telling the US's distorted tale of Iraq history in the making. Jane Arraf comes to mind...
:puke:

[UpInArms]

13. I always think of Mazen Dana

http://www.washingtonpost.com/ac2/wp-dyn/A8400-2003Aug18?language=printer

Monday, August 18, 2003; 2:10 PM

BAGHDAD, Aug. 18 -- A U.S. military spokesman today called the shooting death of an award-winning Reuters cameraman "a terrible tragedy" and said an investigation underway could lead to changes in how the 132,000 U.S. soldiers in Iraq decide when and how soon to open fire in a country still beset by guerrilla attacks and lawlessness.

Mazen Dana, a 43-year-old journalist, was killed by U.S. soldiers Sunday while working outside Abu Ghraib prison on Baghdad's outskirts after they apparently mistook his camera for a rocket-propelled grenade. His colleague, Nael Shyoukhi, said that shortly before the shooting a U.S. soldier at the prison had granted them permission to film. At least a half-dozen other journalists -- cameramen, photographers and reporters -- were working nearby, along a barren expanse intersected by a busy highway.

...more...

there are no accidents in this regard :(

[leftchick]

18. His death just broke my heart as well...

there has been so much slaughter of so many brave souls.
:(

[JohnnyCougar]

2. Eason Jordan, eat your heart out!

Stupid freepers...

[salin]

5. My thought exactly

[Vladimir]

3. What, only one?

who do they think they are kidding?

[daleo]

4. Just a lucky shot.

They can't help it if they're lucky.

[meganmonkey]

7. Well, as long as they are acting "within the rules of engagement"...

:eyes:
It amazes me how often journalists are killed in Iraq, proportionally, yet many people are so quick to deny that the US, on some level, is targeting them.(And for the record, I am NOT implying that our soldiers are incompetent OR murderers, so if you're gonna flame me, please don't flame me for that!)

[renaissanceguy]

24. I remember reading somewhere

that the military went in there with the general attitude that everyone there is the enemy and should therefore be killed.

http://www.cafepress.com/liberalissues.14744291

[librechik]

8. "The investigation concluded that no soldiers fired intentionally."

"This is a recording."

[Gyre]

9. Israel has taught it's puppets well.

And our valiant troops take to the corruption like a duck to water.

They also taught them how to humiliate Arab males and psychologically-destroy muslim women. I say we need Ariel Sharon (or Joe Lieberman) as our next president.

Gyre

[Frederik]

10. "driven through the checkpoint at high speed"

isn't that getting a little old?

[Lori Price CLG]

12. Don't they all? LOL! n/t

[Lori Price CLG]

11. Here is aljazeera (actual) link, instead of informationSTEALINGhouse's...

US admits killing Arab journalists in Iraq
http://english.aljazeera.net/NR/exeres/64BEFBCA-210E-4E39-B8CD-A2EC8E0EB2F1.htm

Good post, chlamor, thanks!

Lori Price

[AlCzervik]

14. I would really like to know when they will admit the same about Mazen Dana

he worked for Reuters for a long time and I'd seen his work many times especially on the Israeli Palestinian conflict. His death was called an "accident", or mistake.

http://about.reuters.com/aboutus/editorial/mazendana/

[GCP]

15. "The investigation concluded that no soldiers fired intentially"

Well, that's alright then,

:grr:

[aneerkoinos]

16. Easongate

Make it a real pursuit of truth instead of easy partisan bigotry. And the towers of power will fall, if you dare...

But you don't dare, of course you don't dare to go against the CM, you bloody yankee liberal lilylivers!

;)

[VegasWolf]

17. Gotta keep the truth under "control". n/t

[lala_rawraw]

19. US admits killing Arab journalists in Iraq

http://english.aljazeera.net/NR/exeres/64BEFBCA-210E-4E39-B8CD-A2EC8E0EB2F1.htm

Aljazeera/Reuters:

The US military has acknowledged it was responsible for killing two journalists working for Dubai-based satellite channel al-Arabiya who were shot close to a checkpoint in the Iraqi capital earlier this month.

Al-Arabiya cameraman Ali Abd al-Aziz died on 18 March from a gunshot wound to the head. Correspondent Ali al-Khatib died from his wounds in hospital the next day. Both were Iraqis.

<snip>

On Monday, a US military official said an investigation into the deaths showed troops were responsible, but had acted "within the rules of engagement".

<snip>

Before the 18 March incident, at least four journalists had been killed by US forces in Iraq.

[Justitia]

20. "within the rules of engagement"???? WTF????

Shooting journalists is "within the rules of engagement"?
Good God, is shooting anybody anywhere "within the rules of engagement"?

Eason Jordan, you are vindicated.

Our "military official"s have gone absolutely mad.

[bullimiami]

21. when will they admit it was on orders from above.

"within rules of ...."

BUSHIT

[sui generis]

22. well maybe we ARE assassinating journalists and that Italian

journalist wasn't so crazy after all. It would perhaps be smarter of our Army spokesman to wake up and address this directly rather than hiding behind "rules of engagement", because those only work when you're holding the gun.

You can only pile so many coincidences and dead bodies together before the pile starts to stink real bad.

[Harlequin]

25. -

-

[EFerrari]

23. Funny, because both threads' subject lines were misleading

Maybe it's me. This is what the military says:

"The investigation concluded that no soldiers fired intentionally at the Kia," the US military said in a statement.

That's not an admission of "killing" at all. And, while in my view they did kill those people, that isn't what they're admitting to.

[lala_rawraw]

26. I just feel so much

Safer now, I cannot begin to express the joy. I will always believe Perle met his end at the hands of people he trusted. You cannot convince me otherwise at this point, sorry to say. This is what the MSM is up against, so those that actually report must have our full support. We also need to stand by our indie journalists/citizen journalists/bloggers and protect them against smears and threats. Remember I posted the other night that Mike Rogers' face, name and phone number was posted, as well as a poster made of him calling him a "homosexual terrorist"? We cannot allow people working to get the truth out to be threatened out, silenced out, and worse. Agreed?