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Pilotless plane took video of town where Iraqis died (Important)
Mercury News/WaPost ^ | 5/29/06 | Tom Ricks

Posted on 05/30/2006 10:13:00 AM PDT by pissant

WASHINGTON - Military investigators piecing together what happened in the Iraqi town of Al-Hadithah on Nov. 19, 2005 -- when Marines allegedly killed two dozen civilians -- have access to video shot by a pilotless aircraft that was circling overhead for at least part of that day, military defense attorneys familiar with the case said in interviews.

It is unclear whether the video obtained from that day's flight captured the violence, said the attorneys, who have consulted with Marines who were there. One attorney said investigators have reviewed surveillance footage taken hours after the shootings, which showed the Marines returning to the town to remove the bodies of the Iraqis.

Monday, Marine Gen. Peter Pace, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said charges will be issued if the evidence merits it. For now, ``it would be premature for me to judge'' the outcome of the two U.S. military investigations, Pace said on CBS's ``The Early Show.''

(snip...Please Read Carefully below)

(Excerpt) Read more at mercurynews.com ...


TOPICS: Crime/Corruption; War on Terror
KEYWORDS: haditha; interesting; iraq; murtha; murthawatch; uav
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To: pissant

Loud and clear, brother.


141 posted on 05/30/2006 11:49:28 AM PDT by oyez (Appeasement is insanity)
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To: MHGinTN
Uh, the Kurdish units are not genocidal .

But killing terrorists and Baathists is not genocide. It might not be PC in the US, but it's not genocide.

142 posted on 05/30/2006 11:50:44 AM PDT by El Gato
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To: spunkets

When there is a police investigation, for example, officers are routinely suspended.


143 posted on 05/30/2006 11:50:44 AM PDT by Peach (If you can't stand behind our military, stand in front of them.)
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To: Peach
"Recent reporting on the events in Haditha, Iraq have included significant factual errors and/or misleading statements. This includes a quote attributed to me in the Washington Post this morning that was taken completely out of context and its meaning distorted. Many facts that are favorable to the Marines involved have not yet been disclosed."

The MSM making up "news" again I see. Not surprising.

144 posted on 05/30/2006 11:52:28 AM PDT by El Gato
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To: Peach

The Post has been unable to get anyone from the Pentagon on the record on the investigation, using mostly anonymous sources. The one man they did get on the record on Friday was retired Brig. Gen. David H. Brahms, a long-time lawyer with the Marine Corps who has experience with these types of cases. His quote is in the third paragraph. See if you can guess why the prominent first-quote placement:
"When these investigations come out, there's going to be a firestorm," said retired Brig. Gen. David M. Brahms, formerly a top lawyer for the Marine Corps. "It will be worse than Abu Ghraib -- nobody was killed at Abu Ghraib." I have a feeling someone was lying in wait for an Abu Ghraib reference. I read the quote and was taken aback because I spoke to the same Brig. Gen. David M. Brahms about the case this week, and his sentiments were very different from those presented in the Post. Which explains why he sent me this statement yesterday:

"Recent reporting on the events in Haditha, Iraq have included significant factual errors and/or misleading statements. This includes a quote attributed to me in the Washington Post this morning that was taken completely out of context and its meaning distorted. Many facts that are favorable to the Marines involved have not yet been disclosed."

http://www.hughhewitt.com/


145 posted on 05/30/2006 11:53:40 AM PDT by Peach (If you can't stand behind our military, stand in front of them.)
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To: lugsoul

No. it's not a waste. AL Quaeda has the ability to obtain WMD and do great damage if we are not vigilant and on offense. But great countries/empires more often than not collapse from within. It is like a cancer, and fortunately Reagan set the table for us to defeat that cancer. Now we must do so. With the power of truth and diligence and being unafraid to stomp on their frickin toes.


146 posted on 05/30/2006 11:53:50 AM PDT by pissant
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To: lugsoul

right now, the case sounds to me like a "shoot first and ask questions later" approach by these Marines. they saw that taxi approaching, probably thought it was a car bomb that was part of an attack - and opened fire on it, killing 5. later, the car is shown not to have been wired. let's see what their motive was behind shooting in those apartments, where the other victims were found.

why did they falsify the report, and say the IED killed them all? they probably panicked, were fearful that the military would not accept a version of events that had them using force out of fear, when the aftermath of the event showed that no threat existed. its very easy with 20/20 hindsight to have some investigator and the media come in to say "oh, what were you guys afraid of?".


147 posted on 05/30/2006 11:55:12 AM PDT by oceanview
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To: pissant

Our troops are under attack from all sides. It's outrageous. We would have lost WWII under these circumstances. It's just nauseating.


148 posted on 05/30/2006 11:55:26 AM PDT by veronica ("A person needs a sense of mission like the air he breathes...")
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To: pissant
Let me guess, they did not publish the name of the Iraqi reporter/historian so we could all evaluate his previous unbiased work?

Heh

I'll start a thread for the article in a minute (I just checked and there isn't one) and ping you. I'll post the rest of the article (i.e.,beyond the requisite excerpt) down-thread.

149 posted on 05/30/2006 11:55:38 AM PDT by delacoert
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To: delacoert

I was not responding directly to your statements. I was responding to Murtha's.


150 posted on 05/30/2006 11:56:35 AM PDT by Stashiu (RVN, 1969-70)
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To: pissant
"This post caught the Mercury News redhanded removing a charge that Murtha was wrong from an article from the Wa. Post."

It looks like a valid cut from an editor. The jist of the atty's defense claim remain's valid. Mentioning Murtha is irrelevant, because he's not the one making the charges.

151 posted on 05/30/2006 11:56:40 AM PDT by spunkets
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To: veronica

Yes, when 80% of the press wants you to fail miserably, it makes the job so much harder. But they will not fail, and have not been failing. thank you Lord.


152 posted on 05/30/2006 11:59:02 AM PDT by pissant
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To: RobRoy

"I have a friend whos father was in the marines (or army) during WWII. He was one of the guys cleaning out the japanese as we island hopped our way to Japan. He actually has a detailed diary of day-to-day action."

I presume you mean http://www.polaris.net/~jrube/intro.html ?

If so, say hi to Jim Garrett from "No.6 from WarBirds" and he'll probably boggle at you :)


153 posted on 05/30/2006 11:59:06 AM PDT by No.6 (www.fourthfightergroup.com)
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To: delacoert

Yes, be sure to BOLDFACE that excerpt. Thanks


154 posted on 05/30/2006 11:59:42 AM PDT by pissant
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To: spunkets

Murtha has inserted himself into this story in a HUGE way. "Cold Blooded", "murdered", Too much "stress", and on and on. If someone with inside knowledge can REFUTE those claims, that's big news.

If the shoe were on the other foot, the headline would have been: "Defense Lawyer Calls Murtha a Liar", and you know it.


155 posted on 05/30/2006 12:02:30 PM PDT by pissant
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To: Peach
"When there is a police investigation, for example, officers are routinely suspended."

Again. They are transfered, not removed for lack of confidence.

156 posted on 05/30/2006 12:03:45 PM PDT by spunkets
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To: pissant

The Marines involved ought to sue all these bastards for BIG bucks!


157 posted on 05/30/2006 12:03:47 PM PDT by ex-Texan (Matthew 7:1 through 6)
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To: lugsoul
To suggest that it is all simply a media creation is to be delusional.

I certainly have suggested no such thing. Now please provide some evidence. I'm really not interested in hearsay from you, Mr. Murtha or Ms. Ingraham.

158 posted on 05/30/2006 12:06:33 PM PDT by Coop (FR = a lotta talk, but little action)
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To: pissant
Does anyone remember the Jenin Massacre? Pali-scum claimed the Israelis went into Jenin and slaughtered 100s of "refugees". The body count was much lower of course and they were mostly wanted terrorists. But the media ran with the story, the UN sent a "commission" and Israel was roundly condemned. As it turned out, there was no massacre and the firing by Israeli troops was in response to be fired upon. Once the truth was out, no one apologized, the UN slunk (is that a word?) back home, and the media moved on to the next Israeli outrage.

I have a hard time believing that Marines killed innocents for anything. I could be wrong, but we only have a fraction of the story. If they did, Im inclined to think that the murderers killed the Marine and then hid in a civilian area and fired on the troops, hoping for collateral damage knowing a willing and compliant media will blame America...again..

159 posted on 05/30/2006 12:06:40 PM PDT by cardinal4 (Kerry-Mcarthy-Gore-Clinton-Feingold-Murtha- Pelosi-the true Axis of Evil...)
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To: cardinal4; All

Jenin seems like a timely reminder of the MSM's malfeasance. thank you


160 posted on 05/30/2006 12:08:28 PM PDT by pissant
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