Thu
May 18 2006
11:26 am
By: Andy Axel

Be ready for a continuous assault on the truth and on the character of Rep. Jack Murtha.

If you haven't read about the incident at Haditha, and why this is just a little bit more than the "contretemps" as the administration would have you believe, please read the detailed accounts:

"American troops immediately cordoned off the area and raided two nearby houses, shooting at everyone inside," said Rsayef, who did not witness the events but whose 15-year-old niece says she did. "It was a massacre in every sense of the word."

Rsayef and another resident, former city councilman Imad Jawad Hamza, who spoke with hospital officials and residents, said the first house to be stormed was that of Abdul-Hamid Hassan Ali, which was near the scene of the bombing.

Ali, 76, whose left leg was amputated years ago because of diabetes, died after being shot in the stomach and chest. His wife, Khamisa, 66, was shot in the back. Ali's son, Jahid, 43, was hit in the head and chest. Son Walid, 37, was burned to death after a grenade was thrown into his room, and a third son, 28-year-old Rashid, died after he was shot in the head and chest, Rsayef and Hamza said.

Also among the dead were son Walid's wife, Asma, 32, who was shot in the head, and their son Abdullah, 4, who was shot in the chest, Rsayef and Hamza said.

Walid's 8-year-old daughter, Iman, and his 6-year-old son, Abdul-Rahman, were wounded and U.S. troops took them to Baghdad for treatment. The only person who escaped unharmed was Walid's 5-month-old daughter, Asia. The three children now live with their maternal grandparents, Rsayef and Hamza said.

Rsayef said those killed in the second house were his brother Younis, 43, who was shot in the stomach and chest, the brother's wife Aida, 40, who was shot in the neck and chest while still in bed where she was recuperating from bladder surgery. Their 8-year-old son Mohammed bled to death after being shot in the right arm, Rsayef said.

Also killed were Younis's daughters, Nour, 14, who was shot in the head; Seba, 10, who was hit in the chest; Zeinab, 5, shot in the chest and stomach; and Aisha, 3, who was shot in the chest. Hoda Yassin, a visiting relative, was also killed, Rsayef and Hamza said.

The only survivor from Younis's family was his 15-year-old daughter Safa, who pretended she was dead. She is living with her grandparents, Rsayef said.

Tip of the hat to Editor and Publisher for publishing details of the atrocities.

My god. A septugenarian amputee. A mother recovering from bladder surgery. Three, four and five year old children shot.

We've gone from the "few bad apples" at Abu Ghraib to "a few good men" letting loose on civilians with grenades and automatic rifles?

And we're supposed to believe that these animals "just snapped" when they started shooting at children? At invalids? At the convalescent?

I am not a soldier, nor do I support this war. There are many things in this universe which I fail to understand, even though there are often myriad explanations which tend to dismiss or excuse this sort of barbarism. I don't pretend otherwise. But I do know that there are those who will proclaim that this incident -- that these actions -- rise to the level of heroism, and that people like Abdul-Hamid Hassan Ali are just unfortunate "collateral damage."

Despite all of my passionate opposition to this war, though? I would like to believe that we train our Marines to be better than this. Yet our administration and our media and the 101st Fighting Keyboard Brigade will deny, obfuscate and offer pathetic, middling excuses for butchery.

This is not the path to democracy. This is not the path to winning hearts and minds.

Don't tell me that this was a piffling lack of restraint. We are supposed to be engaged in a war against terror. How does this serve our interests? Or anyone's?

The horror, indeed.

UPDATE: The military is expected to release a report confirming that, indeed, Marines killed Iraqi civilians.

Excerpt:

A military investigation into the deaths of two dozen Iraqis last November is expected to find that a small number of marines in western Iraq carried out extensive, unprovoked killings of civilians, Congressional, military and Pentagon officials said Thursday.

An image from videotape taken shortly after a fatal raid in Haditha, Iraq. Residents there said several marines carried out unprovoked killings.

Two lawyers involved in discussions about individual marines’ defenses said they thought the investigation could result in charges of murder, a capital offense. That possibility and the emerging details of the killings have raised fears that the incident could be the gravest case involving misconduct by American ground forces in Iraq.

Officials briefed on preliminary results of the inquiry said the civilians killed at Haditha, a lawless, insurgent-plagued city deep in Sunni-dominated Anbar Province, did not die from a makeshift bomb, as the military first reported, or in cross-fire between marines and attackers, as was later announced. A separate inquiry has begun to find whether the events were deliberately covered up.

Evidence indicates that the civilians were killed during a sustained sweep by a small group of marines that lasted three to five hours and included shootings of five men standing near a taxi at a checkpoint, and killings inside at least two homes that included women and children, officials said.

A three to five hour killing spree which targeted women and children.

Indefensible.

Topics:
R. Neal's picture

InstaPundit appears to be

InstaPundit appears to be calling for a Murtha censure.

WhitesCreek's picture

Insta never actually has the

Insta never actually has the guts to accuse anyone of anything, if you read his post ...He merely links to the character assassins and tries to keep his own hands clean.

Oozing cowardice, he lets others attack a man who brings the truth. Murtha's reputation is spotless, but you would never know it.

Try this, for an iinteresting site:

 http://www.instaputz.blogspot.com/

 

Steve

Andy Axel's picture

We Need More Like Mo Udall

(link...)

...a 21-year-old soldier of the 11th Light Infantry (The Butcher's Brigade) named Tom Glen wrote a letter accusing the Americal Division (and other entire units of the U.S. military, not just individuals) of routine brutality against Vietnamese civilians; the letter was detailed, its allegations horrifying, and its contents echoed complaints received from other soldiers. Colin Powell, then a young US Army Major, was charged with investigating the letter, which did not specifically reference My Lai (Glen had no knowledge of the events there). Powell wrote: "In direct refutation of this portrayal is the fact that relations between American soldiers and the Vietnamese people are excellent." Later, Powell's refutation would be called an act of "white-washing" the news of My Lai, and questions would continue to remain undisclosed to the public. On May 4, 2004, Powell, then United States Secretary of State, said to Larry King, "I mean, I was in a unit that was responsible for My Lai. I got there after My Lai happened. So, in war, these sorts of horrible things happen every now and again, but they are still to be deplored."[3]

The carnage at My Lai might have gone unknown to history if not for another soldier, Ron Ridenhour, who, independent of Glen, sent a letter to President Nixon, the Pentagon, the State Department, the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and numerous members of Congress. The copies of this letter were sent in March, 1969, a full year after the event. Most recipients of Ridenhour's letter ignored it, with the notable exception of Representative Morris Udall. Ridenhour learned about the events at My Lai secondhand, by talking to members of Charlie Company while he was still enlisted. Eventually, Calley was charged with several counts of premeditated murder in September 1969, and 25 other officers and enlisted men were later charged with related crimes. It was another two months before the American public learned about the massacre and trials.

Independent investigative journalist Seymour Hersh, after extensive conversations with Lt. Calley, broke the My Lai story on November 12, 1969, and on November 20 Time, Life and Newsweek magazines all covered the story, and CBS televised an interview with Paul Meadlo. The Plain Dealer (Cleveland) published explicit photographs of dead villagers killed at My Lai. As is evident from comments made in a 1969 telephone conversation between United States National Security Advisor Henry Kissinger and Secretary of Defense Melvin Laird, revealed recently by the National Security Archive, the photos of the war crime were too shocking for senior officials to stage an effective cover-up. Secretary of Defense Laird is heard to say, "There are so many kids just lying there; these pictures are authentic."

____________________________

Wasabi peas are people! They're people!

RedDog's picture

Are you presuming guilt?

The reported account sounds horrific. However, all you and Murtha have at this point is a reported account that is under investigation. Why do you lay on the guilt without an indictment, trial, and conviction?

I guess you and Murtha feel that since we are talking about US soldiers who are fighting stateless/uniformless enemies that the course of justice does not apply?

After reading your editorandpublisher reference it stinks a bit of propaganda by the terriorist - you do realize that is a big part of their playbook. In the meantime I'll await the official investigation before besmirching our soldiers on this - as should a Congressman. 

RedDog's picture

>>>But I do know that there

>>>But I do know that there are those who will proclaim that this incident -- that these actions -- rise to the level of heroism, and that people like Abdul-Hamid Hassan Ali are just unfortunate "collateral damage."<<<

Your statement of fact is not substantiated by the link you provide - the article does nothing to address the soldiers level of heroism. In fact what the article does address is that at this point in time there is no evidence of a crime.

 
In fact, what you have stated is an opinion - it is not something you know
 

Andy Axel's picture

There's no evidence of a

There's no evidence of a crime, huh? Well, I guess that's why the Pentagon is reopening an investigation into this case.

And I further suppose that those five-year-old children "killed by an IED" (according to the previous military report) shot themselves in the chests at close range with U.S. issue ammunition, then.

The available evidence does not provide conclusive proof that the Marines deliberately killed innocents in Haditha. But the accounts of human-rights groups that investigated the incident and survivors and local officials who spoke to Time do raise questions about whether the extent of force used by the Marines was justified—and whether the Marines were initially candid about what took place. Dr. Wahid, director of the local hospital in Haditha, who asked that his family name be withheld because, he says, he fears reprisals by U.S. troops, says the Marines brought 24 bodies to his hospital around midnight on Nov. 19. Wahid says the Marines claimed the victims had been killed by shrapnel from the roadside bomb. "But it was obvious to us that there were no organs slashed by shrapnel," Wahid says. "The bullet wounds were very apparent. Most of the victims were shot in the chest and the head--from close range."

There's a videotape from Haditha, by the way.

In fact, what you have stated is an opinion - it is not something you know

What, I don't know that Republican surrogates attack the messenger rather than the message? I don't know that Republicans will smear the character of its servicemen (Murtha is a veteran, as opposed to Bush, Cheney, Rumsfeld, Wolfowitz, Frist, and on and on and on) rather than face up to hard facts? I don't know that there are people on the web who'll paint Jack Murtha as an Arab terrorist? I don't know that GOP surrogates will be calling for the censure of Jack Murtha because he speaks out about the horrors of this war?

Please, RedDog. Would you like to defend the character assassination of an honorably discharged veteran before all the evidence is in on Haditha? Because you seem to be OK with smearing Jack Murtha before all of the evidence is in.

By all means, do your worst. Besides spending money that you don't have and letting other people fight your battles, making excuses is all you GOP types are good at anymore.

____________________________

Wasabi peas are people! They're people!

Brian A.'s picture

Censure?

For talking about an incident the military itself is investigating?  These people really have taken to the Kool Aid.

By the way, just how long does it take to conduct an investigation?  This happened six months ago?  Shouldn't you be able to gather 90% of what you will find out (eye witness testimony) in a few weeks? It's not like they are piecing together a crashed plane.

Brian A.
I'd rather be cycling.

SnM's picture

Brian A wrote:

Brian A wrote:

By the way, just how long does it take to conduct an investigation? This happened six months ago?

****

Try two years and counting in the case of Pat Tillman's death and possible murder. Don't be distracted by such lapdogs as reddog. With the current state of affairs in the military, especially under this secretive administration, the cur's smug confidence in military forthrightness is clearly unwarranted.

As Tillman's mother says in the second article linked below, "healthy distrust of government" is crucial:

"The U.S. Army will launch a criminal investigation to determine whether former NFL player Cpl. Pat Tillman's 2004 death from friendly fire in Afghanistan was negligent homicide, CNN learned on Saturday.

"The Pentagon's inspector general directed the Army Criminal Investigative Division to conduct the probe, sources said.

"Initial reports after his death said Tillman, 27, was shot and killed by Taliban forces during an ambush on April 22, 2004. An investigation later found that fellow soldiers shot Tillman, thinking he was part of an enemy force firing at them..."
(link...)

"In a scalding criticism of the United States Army and the Bush Administration, the mother of Pat Tillman, a former NFL safety who died during combat in Afghanistan, spoke to Palo Alto High School students about the controversy surrounding her son's death....

"Ms. Tillman cited evidence ranging from the suspicious destruction of her son's uniform to the classification of documents that she believed should be released through the Freedom of Information Act as proof that the army and the Administration had something to hide in regard to Tillman's death..."
(link...)

Now some will say, "oh, but the military is investigating, so you shouldn't be critical you damn traitorous felines." But if you've followed the Tillman story, you know the administration built up his death as a supremely heroic one, stonewalled when cracks in the "official" story appeared and have only grudgingly cooperated with the Tillmans in the aftermath.

So, how long does an investigation take?

Two years and counting, for Pat Tillman's family.

Brian A.'s picture

I should have asked . . .

how long does the fact finding in such investigations take?

I've never been involved in any, but my hunch is that someone can piece together what happened in short order.  The remaining months or years are spent in:

(1) covering butts, and

(2) stalling in hopes that an unfortunate news story will fade from the national attention. 

Brian A.
I'd rather be cycling.

Andy Axel's picture

Update

Bump and update.

The reported account sounds horrific. However, all you and Murtha have at this point is a reported account that is under investigation. Why do you lay on the guilt without an indictment, trial, and conviction?

Well, I feel vindicated, RedDog. The military investigation has found that Marines did indeed commit atrocities.

Someone tell Instapundit that he owes Jack Murtha an apology.

____________________________

Wasabi peas are people! They're people!

S Carpenter's picture

Law enforcement solution?

 

Criminal trials will follow for these Marines. 

From the NYT: Two lawyers involved in discussions about individual marines' defenses said they thought the investigation could result in charges of murder, a capital offense.

Apparently some terrorism problems do have a law enforcement solution. Who'd of thunk it

R. Neal's picture

Excellent point. Another

Excellent point.

Another example is the right-wing neocons on TeeVee talk shows talking about how the Mousssaui (sp?) verdict proves the "system" (as in criminal justice system) "works", when the same right-wing neocons were saying two years ago during the election that this isn't a law enforcement or criminal justice problem, as you note.

I don't know what else you would call criminals murdering innocent civilians without declaration of war.

Oh, wait. Never mind. We are at war. Under the leadership of a wartime president. Who says we are at war. Until he says it's over. Or leaves office. Whichever comes first.

On the other hand, when did Al Qaeda declare war? Some say on 9/11. Others say they were criminals murdering innocent civilians, and they should be brought to justice. Dead or alive.

Osama who?

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