Posted on 09/19/2005 11:29:52 PM PDT by propertius
A mob set a British Warrior armoured vehicle ablaze in Basra yesterday, forcing its gunner to leap from the turret, in the worst riots to sweep Iraq's second city in two years.
The soldiers who escaped from the burning Warrior were said to be in a stable condition in hospital
Three soldiers suffered burns and other injuries and the Warrior was badly damaged by a hail of petrol bombs.
The violence in the British-controlled sector cast doubt on Whitehall's plans for an early withdrawal from the south of Iraq.
It broke out after two members of the Special Air Service in Arab clothes were arrested in the city by a militia loyal to the Iraqi government.
Two injured SAS troopers were arrested in Basra while patrolling under-cover in Arab clothes
British troops and vehicles then surrounded Basra's central jail where the soldiers were being held.
There were chants of "Murderers out" as one armoured vehicle manoeuvred into position near a perimeter. The rioters, many of them children, then attacked the vehicle.
British forces entered the prison and freed the two SAS men. Three people were injured during the operation and a wall of the prison was damaged. However, the Ministry of Defence denied a report that tanks had deliberately broken down the wall to release the men.
This summer, soldiers were able to patrol the city in relative safety. But security has deteriorated so badly that the Army has switched from lightly-armed Land Rovers to the more robust Warriors.
Television footage showed the Warrior engulfed in flames. Then the turret hatch opened and a soldier, his clothes and helmet on fire, scrambled out under a hail of missiles.
He and the other injured soldiers, believed to be members of the Coldstream Guards, were treated at the military hospital in Shaibah logistics base. Their condition was stable last night.
Witnesses said the Warrior was towed away after troops fired in the air to disperse the rioters. The interior ministry said that at least two protesters were shot dead.
Photographs of the captured SAS troopers showed them with blood-splattered clothing and one with his head bandaged. The MoD asked newspapers to blank out their faces to prevent identification.
They are thought to have been on a close observation patrol when they were stopped at a checkpoint. They apparently identified themselves but shots were fired when the police tried to arrest them.
"A policeman approached them, then one of these guys fired at him," said a Basra official, Mohammed al-Abadi. "The police managed to capture them but they refused to say what their mission was and suggested that we ask their commander."
Although British troops and Iraqi security forces supposedly work together, in Basra the relationship has soured. Soldiers have been told not to stop if challenged while working under-cover, as insurgents often masquerade as police officers.
Despite the violence on the streets, many Iraqis in Basra said they supported the British military presence.
"Locals are angry with what is happening today," said Haider Samad.
The unrest makes it likely that Tony Blair's plans for a substantial cut in troop numbers by early spring will be shelved. Defence sources told The Daily Telegraph that the Army would remain in at least brigade strength of about 8,000 until the end of next year. This means that plans to move regiments to help fight the resurgent Taliban and heroin producers in Afghanistan will be revised.
The Shias are in the ascendancy in Iraq and stand to gain politically if the new constitution is accepted in a referendum in mid-October. Intelligence sources have suggested that the violence could be the start of a concerted campaign to oust the American-led coalition.
Yesterday's clashes followed a weekend of unrest after troops arrested six members of the Mahdi army, the militia loyal to the rebel Shia cleric Moqtada al-Sadr. Those held included Sheik Ahmad Majid al-Fartusi, the Basra commander of the group, and his aide, Sajjat al-Basri. On Sunday the Mahdi army said it would retaliate on Monday if its leadership was not released. The rioting suggested that it had carried out its threat.
Brig John Lorrimer, the commander of 12th Mechanised Brigade in Basra, said he was aware that those held were prominent citizens, adding: "We have acted against these people as individuals, not as members of any organisation."
Troopers, with one thousand-round belt of .50 caliber ammunition, lock-and-load then watch your sector.
Anti MSM Sarcasm Torpedo ARMED. FIRE!!
I wouldn't have put it past them...
at what point are crowds yelling and screaming and surging
forward with petrol bombs considered legitimate targets?
Waste them....
Me either.
I guess they were under orders not to retaliate as that would have made the rescue of the two SAS operatives a lot more complicated.
"There is speculation that Mr Vincent, who received death threats, was murdered in an attempt to silence him. Four days before his death he had written an opinion piece in The New York Times in which he said that the police force in the British-controlled city had been infiltrated by Shia Muslim extremist militias, who were responsible for carrying out hundreds of murders of prominent Sunni Muslims.
He criticised the British, whose 8,000 troops in the area are responsible for security in Basra, for turning a blind eye to abuses of power by Shia extremists. The whole city was "increasingly coming under the control of Shia religious groups, from the relatively mainstream... to the bellicose followers of the rebel cleric Moqtada al-Sadr".
In his final blog, he wrote: "The British stand above the growing turmoil, refusing to challenge the Islamists’ claim on the hearts and minds of police officers."
Quoting an unnamed Iraqi police lieutenant, Vincent wrote: "He told me that there is even a sort of 'death car': a white Toyota Mark II that glides through the city streets, carrying off-duty police officers in the pay of extremist religious groups to their next assignment," he wrote."
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,7374-1719505,,00.html
There are some quite dramatic pictures of the burning soldiers, but I don't know how to post them....
They are on www.telegraph.co.uk, www.timesonline.co.uk, www.thesun.co.uk and others.
I wish to hell these G*d damned Euros would learn that the Arabs need a good ass kicking before they even consider getting with a program.
The Iraqis are helping us with intel and they are fighting..
The Brits think their kinder gentler approach is superior..and things have gotten out of hand in Basra..
I think they should have let the SAS go assist their own.
Sounds like Basra needs a bit of purging.
Not easy to waste children.
ok , catch the children and spank um....
Sounds like they need it !
They need to wipe out the Mahdi army and Moqtada al-Sadr.
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