Haditha- Horror... or Hoax?

Thanks for looking- I think what you describe is accurate, although it appears the media is dropping this "story" like a hot potato... a comment from LGF:

#180

Redcoat 6/10/2006 12:59PM PDT

A stiff breeze is blowing towards the house of cards that is the MSM Haditha narrative:

From Redsate Blog:

It seems Time Magazine has "regretted some errors" in its original publication of the Haditha scandal:
First, it seems that the most damning piece of evidence has not actually been located.

By MATTHEW COOPER/WASHINGTON (of "Plame" Fame)
Posted Friday, May. 26, 2006
In the original version of this story, TIME reported that "one of the most damning pieces of evidence investigators have in their possession, John Sifton of Human Rights Watch told Time's Tim McGirk, is a photo, taken by a Marine with his cell phone that shows Iraqis kneeling -- and thus posing no threat -- before they were shot." While Sifton did tell TIME that there was photographic evidence, taken by Marines, he had only heard about the specific content of the photos from reports done by NBC, and had no firsthand knowledge. TIME regrets the error.(and the apology's at the bottom -- FB)

http://www.redstate.com/

Our Marines shall be soon vindicated from all wrong.

Thanks for the ping!

What welcome news!! (Deep breath.)

And as I write, here comes the MSM...3 suicides at Gitmo underinvestigation, and investigation into Z-man's death, and looking at Marine training in light of Haditha.

At the moment I'm listening to FOX - the roundtable each weeke- NEWSWATCH.

It is HILARIOUS...Rich Lowrey says..can't we just have ONE day when it's not gloom n doom..just the one day when Zarq gets killed- can't the media let us have O N E day? To which Neil Gabler basically says- there was collaboration between Zarq, the administration and the media...I know Neil is a liberal NUT- but I can't for the life of me grasp WTH he getting at...

What welcome news!! (Deep breath.)

"And as I write, here comes the MSM...3 suicides at Gitmo underinvestigation, and investigation into Z-man's death, and looking at Marine training in light of Haditha."

I caught it, it was NBC, and it was actually a nice refresher about the Honor, Courage, and Commitment drilled into recruits.

Echoes of the Democratic Marxists. Good catch.

It boggles the mind..

I know Neil is a liberal NUT- but I can't for the life of me grasp WTH he getting at...

Nothing - as usual. He just makes noise and fills up air time. They don't have to have facts, truth or evidence...pure innuendo wll to the deed.

No, it's spreading accross the blog world quickly, especially since it is the bloggers who are doing most of the fisking. Rush had a segment on his show yesterday, so look for this to continue to get exposure. As long as we keep pressing.

Yes.. that's good but it's also my point - who reads conservative blogs and listens to Rush? Conservatives. Like I said, it's still more preaching to the choir. But hopefully it will get loud enough to go beyond that.

Thanks for the graphic- it is indeed a lynch mob-- in thousand-dollar suits.

Haditha: Reasonable doubt?

Is it too much to hope that reports of the massacre of civilians in Haditha by U.S. Marines will turn out to be false? At the American Thinker, attorney Clarice Feldman takes a look at evidence suggesting the allegations may not be trustworthy: "Haditha: Is McGirk the new Mary Mapes?" Feldman's analysis should be supplemented by Andrew Walden's Hawaii Free Press report, cited by Feldman: "Haditha: Reasonable doubt."

Posted by Scott at 08:20 AM | Permalink ( click to see original post )

Plame/Haditha and Matt Cooper

Marine Says Rules Were Followed [Haditha]

Washington Post Presents Marine’s Side Of Story

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1647257/posts

Lawyer: Marine Denies Haditha Massacre

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1647142/posts
12 posted on 06/11/2006 3:20:40 PM EDT by Kaslin

Atlas is quite good- read it all:

http://atlasshrugs2000.typepad.com/atlas_shrugs/

HADITHA: 5TH COLUMN MEDIA TERRIBLE LIE

How funny, the sitcom disappeared and reality TV took its place while agenda driven fiction took the place of network and media elite reporting. Manufactured news to further a left wing agenda. The media's behavior is nothing short of astounding. And it may serve a great good. This is a hard slap across the face of the American people to really look at who they choose to get their news. Who do you trust baby?

Today's Washington Post has the dope on what went down at Haditha. I am surprised they ran it. (hat tip AB)

Marine Says Rules Were Followed
Sergeant Describes Hunt for Insurgents in Haditha, Denies Coverup

A sergeant who led a squad of Marines during the incident in Haditha, Iraq, that left as many as 24 civilians dead said his unit did not intentionally target any civilians, followed military rules of engagement and never tried to cover up the shootings, his attorney said.

Staff Sgt. Frank D. Wuterich, 26, told his attorney that several civilians were killed Nov. 19 when his squad went after insurgents who were firing at them from inside a house. The Marine said there was no vengeful massacre, but he described a house-to-house hunt that went tragically awry in the middle of a chaotic battlefield.

"It will forever be his position that everything they did that day was following their rules of engagement and to protect the lives of Marines," said Neal A. Puckett, who represents Wuterich in the ongoing investigations into the incident. "He's really upset that people believe that he and his Marines are even capable of intentionally killing innocent civilians."

Wuterich's detailed version of what happened in the Haditha neighborhood is the first public account from a Marine who was on the ground when the shootings occurred. As the leader of 1st Squad, 3rd Platoon, Kilo Company, 3rd Battalion, 1st Marine Regiment, Wuterich was in the convoy of Humvees that was hit by a roadside bomb. He entered the house from which the Marines believed enemy fire was originating and made the initial radio reports to his company headquarters about what was going on, Puckett said.

Extensive blogosphere coverage (who else can you trust?) here

UPDATE: Shrinkwrappped studies the issue here;

I think we need to change the dynamic of stories like Haditha. Our enemies are exceptionally good at Information Warfare. [...]
"Our enemies use women and children as human shields, and as propaganda tools in their war against the West. Early in the fighting in Iraq our soldiers were entirely too respectful of the Mosque as sanctuary; when our soldiers began to fire on insurgents who hid within the walls of Mosques, denying them safe havens, there was no uprising from the mythical Arab street; the terrorists lost one of their most powerful weapons. Until we start treating every report of an American or Israeli "atrocity" as if it is propaganda, rather than news, they will continue to use this weapon.

Posted by Pamela aka "Atlas" on Sunday, June 11, 2006 at 11:42 AM in Fifth Column, How the Left Destroys the Nation, Iraq, Simmering Civil War in America, World War IV | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBack (1)

Comments

Like most people, I was concerned the story could be true. But then I heard the brother-in-law of the home owner say that he had gone into the home after the Marines killed everyone and threw in a grenade. He described how the Americans had wrapped the bodies in carpets and bedsheets after killing them, then blowing the house to smithereens.

At that moment, I knew the Marines had not murdered anyone. Americans and Marines DO NOT wrap bodies in carpets and bedsheets. It's not part of our death custom. It is Muslim and Iraqi custom, not ours.

The Haditha story is a staged one act play for which there are innumerable versions played out many times across Iraq and Afghanistan and other places Muslims believe they can get mileage from a convienient event.

Click June 11, 2006 03:30 PM for permalink:

TRACKING HADITHA

By Michelle Malkin · June 11, 2006 03:30 PM

I've been offline much of the weekend--a healthy thing every once in a while.

The Haditha story continues to unfold. Allah Pundit is on top of all the latest developments, blog coverage of a possible "hoax," Dem exploitation, new Marine revelations, etc.

Start here. Continue here.

More Haditha bookmarks:

The Greyhawk timeline.
Clarice Feldman's provocative piece at The American Thinker.
Dan Riehl's analysis of media errors.
Sweetness and Light on Time's corrections.

The Chicago Sun-Times apologizes
A smear you can't take back
Haditha hyperventilation
The Haditha tar brush
UK Times smears our Marines
The incident at Ishaqi
Haditha Marine: Insurgents use kids
Haditha: perspective
Incident at Haditha, Pt II
Freedom is not free
Incident at Haditha
Murtha hangs the Marines

SOME CORRECTIONS FROM TIME on Haditha.

UPDATE: Here's much more from The Mudville Gazette.

And Dan Riehl has thoughts, too.

Ansar al-Sunnah Provides Video of Haditha Battle with U.S. Marines

Reported US Military Deaths in Haditha, Iraq

Apr 3, 2003 Haditha
US Captain Russell Brian Rippetoe SW of Haditha Dam - Anbar Hostile - hostile fire - suicide bomber
US Specialist Ryan Patrick Long SW of Haditha Dam - Anbar Hostile - hostile fire - suicide bomber
US Staff Sergeant Nino Dugue Livaudais SW of Haditha Dam - Anbar Hostile - hostile fire - suicide bomber

May 26, 2003 Haditha
US Major Matthew E. Schram Hadithah - Anbar Hostile - hostile fire

Nov. 29, 2003 Haditha
US Staff Sergeant Stephen A. Bertolino Hadithah - Anbar Hostile - hostile fire - ambush
US Specialist Aaron J. Sissel Hadithah - Anbar Hostile - hostile fire - ambush
US Sergeant Jesse W. Strong Hadithah - Anbar Hostile - hostile fire - RPG attack
US Lance Corporal Karl R. Linn Hadithah - Anbar Hostile - hostile fire - RPG attack
US Corporal Jonathan W. Bowling Hadithah - Anbar Hostile - hostile fire - RPG attack

May 7, 2005 Haditha
US Sergeant Michael A. Marzano Hadithah - Anbar Hostile - hostile fire - suicide car bomb
US Sergeant Aaron N. Cepeda Sr. Hadithah - Anbar Hostile - hostile fire - suicide car bomb
US Lance Corporal Lance Tanner Graham Hadithah - Anbar Hostile - hostile fire - suicide car bomb
US Petty Officer 3rd Class Jeffery L. Wiener Hadithah - Anbar Hostile - hostile fire - suicide car bomb

May 25,2005 Haditha
US Sergeant David Neil Wimberg Hadithah - Anbar Hostile - hostile fire - small arms fire

May 26,2005 Haditha
US Major Ricardo A. Crocker Hadithah - Anbar Hostile - hostile fire - RPG attack

Aug 1, 2005 Haditha
US Lance Corporal Roger D. Castleberry Jr. Haditha (near) - Anbar Hostile - hostile fire - small arms fire
US Sergeant David J. Coullard Haditha (near) - Anbar Hostile - hostile fire - small arms fire
US Lance Corporal Daniel Nathan Deyarmin Jr. Haditha (near) - Anbar Hostile - hostile fire - small arms fire
US Corporal Jeffrey A. Boskovitch Haditha (near) - Anbar Hostile - hostile fire - small arms fire
US Lance Corporal Brian P. Montgomery Haditha (near) - Anbar Hostile - hostile fire - small arms fire
US Sergeant Nathaniel S. Rock Haditha (near) - Anbar Hostile - hostile fire - small arms fire

Aug 3, 2005 Haditha
US Lance Corporal Adam J. Strain Ramadi - Anbar Hostile - hostile fire - small arms fire
US Specialist Mathew V. Gibbs Baghdad (southwest part) Hostile - hostile fire - car bomb
US Sergeant 1st Class Charles Houghton Warren Baghdad (southwest part) Hostile - hostile fire - car bomb
US Specialist Jerry Lewis Ganey Jr. Baghdad (southwest part) Hostile - hostile fire - car bomb
US Lance Corporal Nicholas William B. Bloem Haditha (2 km S of) - Anbar Hostile - hostile fire - IED attack
US Corporal David S. Stewart Haditha (2 km S of) - Anbar Hostile - hostile fire - IED attack
US Sergeant Bradley J. Harper Haditha (2 km S of) - Anbar Hostile - hostile fire - IED attack
US Lance Corporal Kevin G. Waruinge Haditha (2 km S of) - Anbar Hostile - hostile fire - IED attack
US Lance Corporal Grant B. Fraser Haditha (2 km S of) - Anbar Hostile - hostile fire - IED attack
US Sergeant Justin F. Hoffman Haditha (2 km S of) - Anbar Hostile - hostile fire - IED attack
US Lance Corporal Eric J. Bernholtz Haditha (2 km S of) - Anbar Hostile - hostile fire - IED attack
US Lance Corporal Aaron H. Reed Haditha (2 km S of) - Anbar Hostile - hostile fire - IED attack
US Corporal David Kenneth J. Kreuter Haditha (2 km S of) - Anbar Hostile - hostile fire - IED attack
US Lance Corporal William Brett Wightman Haditha (2 km S of) - Anbar Hostile - hostile fire - IED attack
US Lance Corporal Christopher Jenkins Dyer Haditha (2 km S of) - Anbar Hostile - hostile fire - IED attack
US Lance Corporal Michael J. Cifuentes Haditha (2 km S of) -Anbar Hostile - hostile fire - IED attack
US Lance Corporal Timothy Michael Bell Jr. Haditha (2 km S of) - Anbar Hostile - hostile fire - IED attack
US Lance Corporal Edward August Schroeder II Haditha (2 km S of) - Anbar Hostile - hostile fire - IED attack

Nov. 16, 2005 Haditha
US Sergeant Jeremy E. Murray Haditha (near) - Anbar Hostile - hostile fire - IED attack

Nov 19, 2006 Haditha
US Lance Corporal Miguel Terrazas Haditha (near) - Anbar Hostile - hostile fire - IED attack

Haditha Marine Says Rules Were Followed

The “Haditha massacre” story continues unraveling: Marine Says Rules Were Followed.

A sergeant who led a squad of Marines during the incident in Haditha, Iraq, that left as many as 24 civilians dead said his unit did not intentionally target any civilians, followed military rules of engagement and never tried to cover up the shootings, his attorney said.
Staff Sgt. Frank D. Wuterich, 26, told his attorney that several civilians were killed Nov. 19 when his squad went after insurgents who were firing at them from inside a house. The Marine said there was no vengeful massacre, but he described a house-to-house hunt that went tragically awry in the middle of a chaotic battlefield.
“It will forever be his position that everything they did that day was following their rules of engagement and to protect the lives of Marines,” said Neal A. Puckett, who represents Wuterich in the ongoing investigations into the incident. “He’s really upset that people believe that he and his Marines are even capable of intentionally killing innocent civilians.”
Wuterich’s detailed version of what happened in the Haditha neighborhood is the first public account from a Marine who was on the ground when the shootings occurred. As the leader of 1st Squad, 3rd Platoon, Kilo Company, 3rd Battalion, 1st Marine Regiment, Wuterich was in the convoy of Humvees that was hit by a roadside bomb. He entered the house from which the Marines believed enemy fire was originating and made the initial radio reports to his company headquarters about what was going on, Puckett said. ...
Wuterich’s version contradicts that of the Iraqis, who described a massacre of men, women and children after a bomb killed a Marine. Haditha residents have said that innocent civilians were executed, that some begged for their lives before being shot and that children were killed indiscriminately.
Wuterich told his attorney in initial interviews over nearly 12 hours last week that the shootings were the unfortunate result of a methodical sweep for enemies in a firefight. Two attorneys for other Marines involved in the incident said Wuterich’s account is consistent with those they had heard from their clients.
Kevin B. McDermott, who is representing Capt. Lucas M. McConnell, the Kilo Company commander, said Wuterich and other Marines informed McConnell on the day of the incident that at least 15 civilians were killed by “a mixture of small-arms fire and shrapnel as a result of grenades” after the Marines responded to an attack from a house.

Mudville Gazette has analysis of the story.

08:02 AM PDT | link: 52 comments

The Haditha Stratagem

http://www.powerlineblog.com/

Haditha: Reasonable doubt?

Today's Washington Post carries Josh White's page-one story reporting the account of one of the Marines directly involved in events at Haditha: "Marine says rules were followed." White's story is the first such media report, though it comes indirectly from the Marine's attorney rather than from the Marine himself. At Democracy Project, Bruce Kesler comments: "Haditha: Now let's see who drive-by media believe." At Mudville Gazette, Greyhawk comments: "Haditha: The accused speak."

TIme Backtracking On Haditha

Sweetness & Light, which has been all over the Haditha story, notes that Time Magazine has been discreetly backing off its Haditha coverage with a series of corrections. Time has an enormous amount of prestige invested in its Haditha "scoop." It turns out, though, that the magazine apparently misrepresented the source of the videotape that got the whole story rolling. And it has also developed that a photograph that Time described as "one of the most damning pieces of evidence investigators have in their possession" is only the subject of rumor, and may not even exist.

As a story about the Marines, the jury is out on Haditha. As a story about journalism, it's starting to look bad for Time. Based on recent history, I suppose that means the magazine is likely to get a Pulitzer.

Via InstaPundit and Power Line News.

Posted by John at 12:17 PM | Permalink

Posted by Scott at 07:45 AM | Permalink

I have not kept up with the Haditha backtracking by Time and other media outlets. I'm inclined to wait until I read the investigation reports to comment any further, but Hot Air, Power Line, and Sweetness and Light have continued to cover the story. Count on Michelle to stay on top of it as well.

Mary Katharine Ham is conducting a post-mortem on Haditha coverage.

http://mypetjawa.mu.nu/

Haditha, The Gatekeepers and The Groundshift

Cross-posted at Mein Blogovault

Much (not all) of what is contained in this post has been stated or articulated elsewhere in the blogosphere, so please forgive and indulge me for the sake of reflection on this important issue.

In its apparent zeal and fervor, the mainstream press may have shot itself in both legs with the outlandish and one-sided Haditha coverage over the past few weeks. It is certainly now evident that there have been glaring and troubling inconsistencies from the “eyewitnesses” to these alleged incidents. It is also evident that the “sources” for the TIME story were presented in a catastrophically misleading way.

A recent Pew Institute report suggested that the Internet is now the most adhered-to source of information and news – surpassing long-time stalwarts like print and television.

Sweetness and Light:

TIME’s “Corrections” About Haditha

Mudville Gazette:

Signal to Noise

The American Thinker:

Haditha: Is McGirk the New Mary Mapes?
Haditha in the Context of History
Haditha, Just War Theory and the Press
The Haditha Stratagem

The StrataSphere –

WaPo Explores Marine’s Side of Haditha
Al-Qaeda Snuff Films in Haditha

Riehl World View –

Haditha Media Errors Exposed

Michelle Malkin –

UK Times Smears Our Troops (with Response)

Democracy Project –

Now Let’s See Who the Drive-by Media Believes

Gateway Pundit –

Bad News for John “Cold Blooded” Murtha, Haditha Story Crumbling

Posted by Good Lieutenant at 06:30 AM | Comments (6) |

Setting Haditha Record Straight
From AliVeritas | 06/12/2006 3:03:06 PM EDT new

http://www.californiaconservative.org/

Scroll down. Cao's Blog re: Haditha
From AliVeritas | 06/12/2006 3:06:12 PM EDT new

http://www.caosblog.com/

Haditha arrival video
From AliVeritas | 06/12/2006 3:06:48 PM EDT new

http://www.dvidshub.net/media/video/0606/DOD_N06060816.wmv