One Utah

Editor & Publisher has a column by Greg Mitchell that’s worth reading. Using a quote from a former New York Times war reporter, Mitchell concludes: “The reality of the war—the fact that the occupation forces have become, along with the rampaging militias, a source of terror to most Iraqis—is not transmitted to the American public…”

Mitchell is commenting on a recent L.A. Times article by Tina Susman: Close and deadly contact: The killing of an Iraqi teen offers a rare look at how U.S. military action in an urban setting can be fatal to civilians. U.S. troops have killed and wounded tens of thousands of innocent Iraqis, either by accident or through carelessness, but although the military sometimes offers condolence payments (capped at $2,500) to the families of innocent victims it does not release civilian casualty figures. In many cases, soldiers involved in an intense firefight don’t find out about bystanders who get hit and are taken to the hospital by relatives and friends.

Since mid-February, Los Angeles Times stringers across Iraq have reported at least 18 incidents in which witnesses said troops had opened fire wildly or in areas crowded with civilians, usually after being attacked. The reports indicated that at least 22 noncombatants died in the incidents.

Some Iraqis don’t credit Americans with following the rules of engagement. To a casual observer, soldiers who open fire in response to an attack can appear to be seeking revenge. As more combat units arrive in Baghdad, such shootouts are becoming an everyday event.

“It’s a psychological thing. When one U.S. soldier gets killed or injured, they shoot in vengeance,” said Alaa Safi, who said his brother, Ahmed, was killed April 4 when U.S. troops riddled the streets of their southwestern Baghdad neighborhood with bullets after a sniper attack.

This entry was posted Wednesday, June 20th, 2007 at 9:18 am and is filed under Disaster, Iraq, This Blog, War. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.