Reuters Reported 'Bodies In The Street' At Haditha

Reuters/Sweetness & Light ^ | June 8, 2006 | N/A

[Sam Hill]

A report filed the day after the alleged "massacre" by Saudi-owned Reuters:

A frame grab from a video provided to Reuters on March 21, 2006 by Hamourabi Human rights group shows a body being carried, which Hamourabi says was loaded onto a truck with bodies of a family shot dead in their home in Haditha, in western Anbar province, Iraq.

US details Haditha shoot-out

Last Update: Sunday, November 20, 2005. 9:15pm

A roadside bomb that killed a US Marine in the restive town of Haditha on Saturday also killed 15 Iraqi civilians and led to intense clashes with insurgents.

The powerful bomb detonated as a US military convoy was passing through the town, which is 220 kilometres north-west of Baghdad.

The US military says immediately after the blast, gunmen opened fire on the convoy.

US and Iraqi soldiers returned fire, killing eight insurgents and wounding another in a firefight.

A cameraman working for Reuters in Haditha says bodies had been left lying in the street for hours after the attack.

He says the town has been virtually shut down for the past two days as US and Iraqi forces try to impose order.

US troops have been trying for months to quell the insurgency in Haditha and other Sunni Arab towns on the Euphrates.

It was suspected several months ago that Jordanian militant Abu Musab al-Zarqawi was hiding out in the area.

The casualties from Saturday's blast raised the death toll from attacks across Iraq over the past three days to at least 166.

Sunni-led insurgents are stepping up their battle against US and Iraqi forces ahead of parliamentary elections in December.

The cameraman from Reuters was undoubtedly Ali Omar Abrahem al-Mashhadani, shown here after his recent release from prison:

At the time of the Haditha incident, al-Mashhadani had just been released from a year in detention by the US and Iraqi government for his ties to the insurgency.

And yet even al-Mashhadani reports that there were bodies "left lying in the streets."

We have subsequently been told that the Marines went from house to house (now up to 20 houses) and killed people "execution style" in each house. (For example, in the caption for the video grab above.)

Why would there be "bodies had been left lying in the street for hours after the attack"?

And didn't the Reuters cameraman take photos? Why haven't we seen them since?

Aren't they important?

[IrishMike]

Ping for the truth !!!!!

[Eagle9]

The one thing that I still have a question mark regarding is the initial report by the marines - that several of the dead civilians were killed by an explosive (IED)... When many of the bodies found were shot.

That inconsistency may well be the reason why the investigations have not yet been concluded, despite the growing accumulation of evidence showing that the "massacre" is a concoction by the terrorists.

[Just A Nobody]

Thank you, thank you!!!

[marron]

I have seen the photos of piles of bodies at the morgue. I have not seen any photos of the battle scene before the bodies were disturbed. Since there were apparently reporters on the scene, where are the photos?

Why did it take 4 months for the information to come out, when there were reporters on the scene?

This didn't happen. Its a manufactured incident.

[Velveeta]

Good catch!

[karnage]

"It's a manufactured incident."

I'm witchoo.

[Publius6961]

My Secretary handed me a document this evening which stunned me. It was a document from the investigation which had been scanned and e-mailed to my office by a member of the media. I don’t know who leaked the document- - whether it was an ...

If the document has already been "leaked" why isn't it shared with the rest of us? We can only infer from the tone of the post that the document is prejudicial to this lawyer's client; exposing that to the widest audience increases the likelihood of constructive help to the accused marine's benefit.

As an aside, I have never been in the military, but speaking to a few who have, the impression that I get is that "rights" as enjoyed by civilians is a different univerese to "rights" (or lack thereof) as enjoyed by a member of the military; I have heard over and over that in the military "you have no rights" or your rights are simply "what superior officers say they are". A rather strange monster to understand, never mind grappling with.

All I know is that when members of our military, doing their duty in a war zone are mistreated worse than captured enemy terrorists, something is truly wrong, and it angers me.
When our president and the highest military leaders respond to punishing these heroes based on accusations alone, without actual charges, something is seriously wrong. Being hanged by the hypothetical is simply unacceptable.

I can only repeat my disgust at the circumstances, the injustices visited on the kids putting their lives on the line daily for all of us, and my total commitment to never accept fighting under those circumstances, nor to allow any member of my family to do so.

[Publius6961]

That list of links is awesome, delacoert.
Thank you for the obvious time and effort that must have gone into preparing it.

[AmericanYankee]

When these marines are exonerated, they should hold a televised press conference with every single media organization including Al jazeera. They should openly criticize the media at this press conference and go point by point how they readily splurge enemy propaganda and NEVER gives troops any fair coverage. Basically scold the entire media.

[TheCrusader]

"The one thing that I still have a question mark regarding is the initial report by the marines - that several of the dead civilians were killed by an explosive (IED)... When many of the bodies found were shot."

The answer is that Marines aren't coroners. Initial reports after a fierce battle are almost always contradictory, as can be expected.

What really makes me irate is the thought of U.S. Marines sitting shackled in some military dungeon somewhere without so much as a charge being filed against them yet. They take our heros, our brave defenders, place them in the most confusing war ever fought with the most ridiculous rules of engagement constraints ever dreamed up, then treat them WORSE than we treat terrorists at GITMO as soon as some allegation of misconduct is raised against them.

[TheCrusader]

"I can only repeat my disgust at the circumstances, the injustices visited on the kids putting their lives on the line daily for all of us, and my total commitment to never accept fighting under those circumstances, nor to allow any member of my family to do so."

You and I both, and I say that as a member of a family with a long military history. My dad served in WWII, in the South Pacific and at Normandy. His brothers served too. My mother's brothers all served during WWII, and she herself worked for the Dept of the Navy with her sister, as civilians during WWII. I served in Vietnam, my brothers are Vietnam era veterans. My step son is currently serving in the U.S. Marines. But if I could turn back the clock three years, I would have discouraged him from serving because of the ridiculous, counter-productive and absolutely STUPID way this war in Iraq is being fought.

The rules of engagement and the embedded media are as deadly to our troops as that other enemy they must deal with, the islamic terrorists. It's not just the media and the Democrats that are to blame for this debacle, it's the moderates in the White House who are running this war that are caving in to the pressure of Leftist political correctness and media scrutiny. Bush is a weak leader who tries to appease all sides. Are we in a war or not? If so, remove the microscopes our troops are being scrutinized under and let them fight; if not, then let's get our guys home immdediately. We can use them on our borders.

[spunkets]

The bodies left in the street for hours were the 4 from the taxi that were shot. The other 4 terrorists were from the 4th house.

[Thombo2]

He definitely look European.Guys in pic were from some human rights group.I don't know where they're from though.

[Sam Hill]

It's hard to keep it straight, but I thought only the Marines talked about the taxicabs.

The Haditha locals never seem to mention them, but always make it sound like all the 15-24 were from the houses.

[Sam Hill]

BTW, the larger question still remains.

Why no talk of a massacre? This was a Reuters reporter/camera man.

Why did he not notice signs of a massacre? All of the locals were supposed to be outraged. He was clearly in the neighborhood (or claimed to be).

After Time's story broke in May, he was on the scene the next day, and one the first reporters to "confirm" that it was a massacre.

[Prost1]

In my country (USA) one is innocent until proved guilty.

The Marines are innocent. They have not had a trial and have not been convicted.

The bodies of the victims are not being allowed to be exhumed so that the deaths can be recorded for court record.

Thus, the Marines are innocent! There is no evidence against them!

Get it! (note: not personal to recipient, but comment in general to readers.)

IOW, I agree with Michael Savage! Love him, hate him or don't care...he is right on this issue!

Paul Revere needs to Ride!

[spunkets]

"Why no talk of a massacre? This was a Reuters reporter/camera man."

Cameramen usually disapear in a gunfight. Where's the pics of the dead terrorists around the taxi? Cameramen usually have a camera.

According to the Marines, the taxi blocked their way. It pulled around the corner and caused the patrol to stop, or slow down. The bomb went off after the patrol vehicles stopped, or were coming to a halt. Just after the Marines(joint US/Iraqi patrol) exited to go to the aid of the Marines in the destroyed vehicle, they came under fire from the first house, or from just outside it. I think that's the point the taxi emptied and the Marines fired on it and the house.

The Marines advanced on the house. Some took up guard positions and the others assaulted it. I would assumed they used grenades and initial fire around corners and through the door. That's, because they IDed the house as the source of the ambush.

In general the population of Anbar is sympathetic to the terrorists. They're only moved to cooperate with them actively by threats and intimidation. Since none of the terrorists that ambushed the Marines with fire were in the house, they probably retreated to some other cover nearby. The 9y/o survivor already confessed the family was in on the IED setup.

Towards the end of the assalt on the first house, they were again fired upon. They thought the fire came from the 2nd house. It probably came from the 4th house, or from the terrorists that retreated. They did use grenades on the 2nd house. In all this, I'm sure the fat guy, the "budding journalist" was not outside pointing his fat belly at the Marines while he watched the action.

The 3rd house was cleared w/o firing. The 10+ inside were handed over to an Iraqi guard. The 4th involved firing, because 2 of the 4 men inside were handling and probably trying to hide an AK.

Evidently this action continued. The terrorists that first fired on the MArines were probably part of the group that got hit with the Harrier ordnance a few hours later. I'm sure the cameraman didn't show up until the action was well over. Marines from battalion showed up, some took pics. The bodies from the houses were carried out by Marines much later, loaded on trucks and taken to the hospital. I doubt they let anyone enter the buildings until it was all over.

The "massacre" is just a story the Iraqi miscreants made up. The report on the story of the false press release is supposed to be released very soon. Maybe Fri., or next week. That will give an indication of where this is all going.

"After Time's story broke in May, he was on the scene the next day, and one the first reporters to "confirm" that it was a massacre."

They might all be at Zarkawi's today confirming the same thing... Bunch of womenn and children killed...lots of wreckage.

[spunkets]

"It's hard to keep it straight, but I thought only the Marines talked about the taxicabs."

The media/Iraqi miscreants attempted to say they were just college students on their way home and the Marines killed them just, because they were there. They claimed they showed up after the bomb went off and they tried to back away, then were shot. It's not flying for some reason. Probably, because they discovered that the initial sequence of events was better documented then they thought. The taxi blocked the patrol to give the bombers a better shot. They're suggesting that the bodies in the street were from the houses now.

[WOSG]

LOTS OF LINKS ON HADITHA - thanks!

[American Cabalist]

Al-Mashhadni's video is a FRAUD, and I'll tell you why. His video shows Iraqis (and Europeans??) removing bodies from houses and piling them in a truck outside. THIS NEVER HAPPENED!

1. We already know that Marines were sent in to photograph the site and take the bodies to the morgue. The Iraqis DID not remove the bodies themselves. See this article about a Marine Mom saying her son was traumatized with having to remove the dead children's bodies.

2. The video shows and the narrator describes charred corpses with limbs blown off. The Iraqi doctor claims all 24 were killed with execution-style gunshots to the head and chest. Doesn't jibe.

3. Several men were standing about 5 feet away from the IED when it exploded - their body parts have NOT been accounted for by the same illustrious Iraqi doctor and the Hammurabi group.

4. The guy who runs the heretofore nonexistent Hammurabi Human Rights Monitoring group is Abdel Al-Mashhadani. The photojournalist who took the video and brought he "story" to gullible Tim McGirk of TIME Magazine is Ali Al-Mashhadani - who was arrested, WITH HIS BROTHER, last summer for having ties to terrorists!

There's a lot more here. All the links, and video, and articles - read it all for yourself. Interesting updates at the bottom of the article.