Italy to send attack helicopters to Iraq

[leftchick]

http://www.hindustantimes.com/news/181_1210898,00050003.htm

Italy is to send its powerful Mangusta attack helicopters to Iraq because of worsening unrest in the run-up to January 30 elections, and following the killing of one of its soldiers by insurgents last week, media reports said on Sunday.

"Based on the worsening situation we have been evaluating, already for some time, sending the Mangusta helicopters into the field," said General Filiberto Cicci, the top military officer overseeing the Italian mission in Iraq,

The Corriere della Sera newspaper said the Mangustas would be sent "within a matter of days, or a few weeks".

However, Cicci said in an interview with Sunday's La Stampa the decision to send the Mangusta was unrelated to the killing of a machine-gunner aboard one of its standard helicopters last Friday.

Controversy has raged in Italy over the suitability of the current AB-412 helicopter for the Iraq mission, where it is mainly used for reconnaissance and providing air protection for humanitarian convoys.

[LynnTheDem]

1. That's funny...don't the rightwingnuts screech about Hussein's use of

attack-copters to put down rebels in Iraq???

I'm pretty sure they do...

:eyes:

[FlemingsGhost]

2. It's likely Italy will pay dearly for this move ...

... and probably on their own soil.

Fools.

[daleo]

3. Attack helicopters at polling stations.

It's brilliant. Talk about spreading democracy. Why didn't Bush think of it?

[leftchick]

4. he probably did...

they weren't necessary with the repuke voting machines in place.