"And .. how do we know that the room was not full of insurgents .. "
Exactly. A few Viet Nam Marine vets I spoke to didn't even flinch about what happened. Unfortunately, there is always collateral damage. Only the men who have fought in war can understand it. All those marines could be dead right now - we just don't know. Instead, they are in solitary confinement. God bless them.
What I'm wondering has nothing to do with collateral damage.
What if the terrorists took innocent Iraqis into that house and held them there against their will.
What if .. when our guys came walking down the street, the terrorists started shooting at our guys and we returned fire.
What if .. the terrorists then shot the innocent Iraqis .. and became the witnesses who proclaimed that our troops had actually shot these people - in cold blood.
That's what I'm talking about! It was a set-up from the beginning.