Winnning the hearts and minds of the people
Borzou Daragahi of the AP writes:
Townspeople: U.S. Forces Killed Five Civilians in Response to Attack on Tank Patrol
Jaafar Obeid, a farmer, told The Associated Press that five male relatives - including a 70-year-old man and three of his sons, - were shot by American troops who apparently mistook them for militants fleeing after attacking a U.S. tank patrol.
Lt. Col. Greg Julian, a U.S. military spokesman, declined to comment on reports of civilian casualties in the incident, which started late Thursday on the outskirts of Balad, a rural area 30 miles north of Baghdad.
"If they're wearing civilian clothing and shooting weapons at you, they are not classified as civilians," Julian said Saturday.
But townspeople said the five men were trying to douse fires in their wheat fields set by U.S. flares when soldiers shot them. Mourners set up three tents for funeral services in Elheed, the village near Balad where people said the men were killed.
Obeid said an American officer came and apologized to the family Friday morning for the deaths, which he said have devastated the village.
Sometimes, of course, "sorry" doesn't help. Oh, and the body counts are off, too. Sound familiar?
There were no American casualties but conflicting reports of Iraqi deaths. U.S. Central Command said American forces killed 27 Iraqi insurgents but officers at the scene put the number much lower, at five or seven.
But don't worry! We've got search and destroy missions underway already.
"We will maintain that pressure, causing him to react to us, rather than vice versa," said Lt. Gen. David McKiernan, U.S. ground forces commander in Iraq. "Are there bad guys still out there? Absolutely. Are we going after them? Absolutely."
For weeks, American forces have been targets of hit-and-run attacks, usually by individuals or small groups throwing grenades, or firing rockets or small arms, and then fleeing. Forty-nine U.S. soldiers have died in Iraq since May 1, according to the U.S. Central Command.
Hmmm.... Who's pressuring whom, here?
"Mission Accomplished" my Aunt Fanny. RMA
this, Rummy!
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