US confirms its troops killed Reuters journalist in Iraq

[sabra]

http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/MAC162490.htm

US confirms its troops killed Reuters journalist in Iraq

BAGHDAD, Sept 1 (Reuters) - The U.S. military confirmed on Thursday that its soldiers killed a Reuters journalist in Iraq but said their action was "appropriate".

Describing Sunday's incident, when television soundman Waleed Khaled was killed by multiple shots, Major General Rick Lynch said: "That car approached at a high rate of speed and then conducted activity that in itself was suspicious. There were individuals hanging outside with what looked to be a weapon.

"It stopped and immediately put itself in reverse. Again suspicious activity. Our soldiers on the scene used established rules of engagement and all the training received ... decided that it was appropriate to engage that particular car.

"And as a result of that the driver was indeed killed and the passenger was hurt by shards of glass."

Please read this account of the incident:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/programmes/from_our_own_correspondent/4202186.stm

Innocent civilian

Waleed Khaled appears to have been fired on without any warning. He leaves behind a wife who is four months pregnant and a seven-year-old daughter.

The Reuters cameraman with him was injured and, although the main witness to what had happened, he was promptly arrested by the Americans.

....

When an American journalist working for Reuters, managed to get to the scene with a British security adviser, he found the Americans laughing and joking around Waleed's body.
They were also refusing to give the injured cameraman any water.

The security adviser - a former British soldier - said it was apparent to him that the American troops wanted to clear away any evidence before there could be an outside inquiry.

He said what was most worrying was that the unit did not seem to care that they had shot dead an innocent civilian.

[okieinpain]

1. you know it really funny, because all it takes is one rodney king

to start a riot. you would think they (american soldiers) would know this by now.

[alkaline9]

3. my bet is that lots of Americans that are in favor of war...

...are the same ones that think Rodney King deserved it. We are living in such sad times, its heart breaking.

[Orrex]

11. Hey, King *did* deserve it

After all, he kept trying to escape when all those cops wanted to do was bash his skull in. He should have lain there and taken it like a good little citizen.

[High Plains]

2. More heroism from our troops

[Name removed]

4. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[jayfish]

7. Bull Fucking Shit.

I tired of you apologists. Lets take some words right from the fucking article.

"It stopped and immediately put itself in reverse."

That means that they were no longer a threat to that check point or what ever the fuck we put-up out there. Stop condoning the killing of innocents.

Jay

[brentspeak]

10. I think what you should do is

go to an Army base, to the mess hall, and say to all present more-or-less what you said to me.

Then report back.

[jayfish]

13. Ya I'll Get Right On That.

I said it to you.

Jay

[northzax]

16. and I think you should go to a Neo-Nazi rally

and say "Hey, Jews ain't that bad" and then report back.

see how it's irrelevant?

and no, I am not comparing soldiers to neo-nazis, just sometimes it's not a good idea to speak truth to power.

[MountainLaurel]

30. You just proved his point n/t

[High Plains]

14. Just the facts, ma'am

[Name removed]

18. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[gratuitous]

5. Soldiers said their action was "appropriate"

Well gee, I guess we should just let the accused killers decide what is or isn't "appropriate" in any given situation, and let the investigation proceed or founder from there.

And Judge Dingleberry can't decide whether the photos and videos from the Iraq prison camps should be released. Remind me to commit any crimes I might decide to commit in his jurisdiction, since he seems to think that the accused are in control of all evidence to be presented or considered.

[leesa]

25. Yup. so were all the other journalists they gunned down to keep their

little secrets safe there.

[displacedtexan]

6. I was wondering what kind of bad Buscho news...

would be dumped during this national crisis.

Now I know.

I expect more while people are distracted.

[AnnInLa]

8. kick, kick, kick

[aint_no_life_nowhere]

9. The US killed unarmed defenseless and dying POWs

Remember the video showing a US soldier dispatching two Iraqi insurgents at point blank range who had been wounded two days before? An inquiry completely cleared the soldier and found the murders "appropriate". Therefore, why should the killing of a journalist surprise anyone?

[lumpy]

21. Yes we remember that

and the video of a downed Iraqi who was shot dead and the glee and exhiliration expressed by the soldier who offed the man. Hard to support that. As for the journalist, his name indicates he is a mid-easterner. Hence the saying, I guess, "all is fair in love and war". Unhappily.

[Judi Lynn]

12. Thanks for both articles. We don't need a Bush slug to explain

what is happening.

By the way, I hope the Democrats who are reading this thread saw the article in the last day or two which said that we've killed more journalists in _Bush's pet war than we did in the entire VietNam war.

Real food for thought.

[defiant1]

15. Ohhhhhh k.....

*snipped from 2nd article*

"It is an easy analogy for critics of the American presence here to bandy about, and the truth is that there are both similarities and differences.

Half a million American troops spent 10 years in Vietnam fighting the communists before suffering their humiliating withdrawal.

This time the United States' commitment is much smaller, casualties have been fewer and the aim is to leave heads-held-high much sooner."

So to him, the differences are:

(1) we don't have as many troops over there
(2) not as many have died
(3) and our goal is to get out quicker then we did in 'Nam

Don't those seem kind of trivial?

[northzax]

17. what a great week

to release bad news, huh?

[xchrom]

19. journalists = enemy #1

[slay]

22. Because truth = enemy #1

to the people who want this war to continue. :(

[Darranar]

20. Appropriate? Killing an innocent person is "appropriate"?

Disgusting.

[Up2Late]

23. Their are NO words for this.

[Southpaw Bookworm]

24. Anderson Cooper better watch out

He's probably first on the domestic hit list.

Appropriate?!

:wow:

[AuntiBush]

26. Notice it's "always" a "speeding vehicle" excuse!

[Usrename]

27. the "hearts and minds" campaign n/t

[Nothing Without Hope]

28. This is horrible horrible horrible. What has our nation become? n/t

[Lilith Velkor]

29. A fascist shithole. n/t

[wtmusic]

31. "engage" is a synonym for "blast the shit out of"

and not "To pledge or promise, especially to marry".

I looked in my military thesaurus.

[[e-mail]]

32. because he was reporting the truth ?

I bet