Breaking: British tanks smash Iraqi jail to free(yes, you read that right)

[sabra]

http://www.leadingthecharge.com/stories/news-0074494.html

British Attack Basra Jail to Free Two

BASRA, Iraq - British forces using tanks broke down the walls of the central jail in the southern city of Basra late Monday and freed two Britons, allegedly undercover commandos, who had been arrested on charges of shooting two Iraqi policemen.

http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/BAK971467.htm

British tanks smash Iraqi jail to free UK soldiers

BASRA, Iraq, Sept 19 (Reuters) - British forces used tanks to smash down the walls of a prison in the southern city of Basra and freed two undercover British soldiers seized earlier by Iraqi forces, an Interior Ministry official said on Monday.

The official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said half a dozen tanks had broken down the walls of the jail and troops had then stormed in to free the two British soldiers. The governor of Basra confirmed that the jail had been broken into.

The Interior Ministry official said dozens of Iraqi prisoners being held at the jail had escaped at the same time.

BBC Video Coverage:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/nolavconsole/shared/player/player.stm?title=Basra%20clashes%20follow%20UK%20troop%20arrests&clipurl=http://news.bbc.co.uk/media/avdb/news_web/video/9012da680026a08/nb/09012da680026b75_16x9_nb!asx&cs=news

[aquart]

1. Well, okey dokey now.

[BBradley]

2. Uhhh... So the British are killing Iraqi policemen now?

That's interesting...

[KittyWampus]

19. Wonder what else they were guilty of... kidnapping? car bombs?

[goclark]

3. Is this the "freedom" that the Chimp wants -LOL

[geomon666]

4. Oh ok.

I guess the law only applies to Iraqis.

[knowbody0]

5. quick, call hallibutton

no bid contract to rebuild

[PunkPop]

6. Holy Shit!!

:wow:

[Sunkiss BlueStar]

7. Embarrassing Embarrassing

When the Iraqis do their jobs right they're still attacked.
but we're making progress:sarcasm:

[QuettaKid]

8. where is the thread that had the pics of these 2 guys? nt

.

[PunkPop]

13. Here

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=102x1791641

[DrDebug]

9. Shot to kill policy again?

At least they'll free you out of jail. Iraqi independence :lol

[Mr_Spock]

10. Holy Shite!!! Law and Order my Arse!!!

This is utterly ridiculous and is NOT going to go over well AT ALL!

What the fuck is wrong over there - anarchy?

[phusion]

11. hahahaha

holy shit.

Weirdest story to come out of Iraq in months. What the fuck?

I don't even have a critical response to this madness. What are they doing??

[Scurrilous]

12. Seems...

...they're taking this freedom bringing to a whole new level.

[Sabriel]

14. Are they sovereign or are they not?

People need to make up their minds! How much more patronizing can we (US/British) be?!

(Don't answer that....)

[Taxloss]

15. What in hell is going on here?

BBC link:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/middle_east/4262336.stm

Two British soldiers arrested by police after a shooting incident in the southern Iraqi city of Basra are in the custody of UK forces, UK officials say.
But it is not clear how the men, whose arrest prompted violent clashes in which two civilians were reported to have been killed, came to be released.

UK officials said they had been talking with police to get the men freed.

Earlier, two British tanks, sent to the police station where the soldiers are being held, were set alight in clashes.

Crowds of angry protesters hurled petrol bombs and stones injuring three servicemen and several civilians.

TV pictures showed soldiers in combat gear, clambering from one of the flaming tanks and making their escape.

[Just Me]

17. Appears Sp Ops got caught red-handed in creating civil division.

They were dressed as locals and had bombs in their car. So, the Iraqi police force held them.

Then, in comes the "coalition" calvary and blasts through a prison to make sure their Sp Ops escape.

These are very bad times. Every person who suspected that the "coalition" was intentionally creating the conditions for a civil war will now have their suspicions validated.

[Taxloss]

18. Well, I think you might be assuming a bit much there

but this is suspicious as hell.

[Tempest]

24. Why is this assuming too much?

Aren't you aware of the campaigns of terror the U.S. has engaged in for the last 50 years?

Just ask Cuba, Argentina, Central America and Iran what this country is capable of.

And it's naive to think other countries don't engage in the same thing.

[Just Me]

31. Yup. Intentional destabilization is a common U.S. tactic.

No reason to assume that the Brits wouldn't be working hand-in-hand with U.S. Sp Ops to create the conditions necessary to keep the whole country off-balance.

[whopis01]

34. Where do you get this from?

The articles state that they were dressed as civilians and were driving a civilian vehicle. You jump from that to assuming that they had bombs in the vehicle? How on earth do you make that jump of logic? They were arrested for a shooting incident between them and Iraqi police.

Then you use your false claims to indicate that this is part of a plan to create civil war. Why not claim that they had nuclear bombs in their car? Or a crate of anthrax in the trunk? If you are going to spread false rumors, you should at least make them interesting.

Perhaps you misread the article which claimed Iraqis threw petrol bombs at the tank which smashed the jail in the escape operation. There was never any claim that the British troops had bombs in their car (other than from you).

I am in no way attempting to condone the actions of these soldiers or those who aided in their escape. However, making up lies about what was going on does in no way help the cause. It just gives fodder to those who claim everything coming out of this site (and others like it) are lies.

[MisterP]

41. 3rd paragraph

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/09/19/AR2005091900572.html

[Just Me]

44. WAPO article -----------------------> HERE

Or rather, HERE: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/09/19/AR2005091900572.html


See the part about bombs? :*

[slaveplanet]

67. and here

juancole.com

The two Britons that were arrested had in their possession explosives and remote-control devices, as well as light and medium weapons and other accessories.

[Junkdrawer]

47. Logically, I knew that a stable Shiite-controlled Iraq was not in BushCo's

interest. In my most cynical moments, I suspected this...but damn...

[muriel_volestrangler]

21. BBC is being very coy

everyone else has reported tanks broke down the walls. They seem pretty clear. Has the BBC buckled under government pressure?

[Taxloss]

33. It looks a bit that way. nt

[Why Syzygy]

54. No one knows

who the enemy is. Viet Nam ring a bell?

Total chaos, aka George W. Bush and his devil masters.

[rocktivity]

16. CUE THE HOGAN'S HEROES THEME SONG!

I think I need a new scorecard--I thought the Iraq police and the coalition forces are on the same side?

:crazy:
rocknation

[HughMoran]

27. LOL!

:rofl:

I see NOTHING! I know NOTHING!

[sabra]

20. added BBC coverage...

[aint_no_life_nowhere]

22. I guess it required extraordinary measures lest they be interrogated

Besides the fact the British had total disregard for the Iraqi rule of law, for which I thought they were fighting, this smells like an attempt to free these two men before they could be interrogated and certain facts about their activities made known.

[Guy_Montag]

68. British soldiers should be handed over to the Army if arrested

according to reports on the BBC, it is current Iraqi law that British soldiers (& US soldiers) should be handed over to their own forces immediately.

Whether or not you approve of this law, it stands, therefore it's not the British forces having total disregard for the Iraqi rule of Law.

Currently the British Army are stating that these men were handed over to a local militia.

[slaveplanet]

69. according to the US, Brits & O Lieley-

if you're out of uniform, you're an enemy combatant

How could the Iraqis verify what they were if they were out of bloody uniform?

[Guy_Montag]

70. Only in a warzone

& Iraq is no longer a war zone. As I'm sure the families of the 1000 or so Iraq's that die every month will be happy to know.

[tgnyc]

23. Un-fucking-believable. Just when you thought this disaster

couldn't get worse.

[AzDar]

25. Jeebus...and I was reading earlier today on DU, that 1 BILLION

dollars in U.S. hands,was stolen...somehow. It's making Vietnam look like Operation Overlord, you know???

[sabra]

26. BRITISH EMBASSY CONFIRMS TWO BRITISH SOLDIERS FREED FROM JAIL IN

http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/ALI971469.htm

BRITISH EMBASSY CONFIRMS TWO BRITISH SOLDIERS FREED FROM JAIL IN IRAQI CITY OF BASRA

[The_Mule]

28. Kick and recommended, so that we can get to the bottom of this

I have no other words, other than
:wtf:

[Supersedeas]

29. ANOTHER example of IRAQI sovereignty??? hmmmmmm?

[jimshoes]

30. What version of democracy

is that type of action based upon?

[understandinglife]

32. Wrong side of the law; wrong side of history -- byproducts of imperialism.

Foment civil war; maintain control of air bases, oil and water.

The agenda has been obvious since way before March 19, 2003 and Blair is as willing a war criminal and imperialist as are Bush and the neoconsters. These are evil people, to the core.



Peace.

[Just Me]

36. Coincidentally, an unauthenticated message from "Iraq Qaeda" ,...

,...threatens a "war on Shi'ite Muslims in Iraq".

http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/L19169092.htm


Meanwhile, Brit Sp Ops are caught by Iraqi police planting bombs? Whew, boy.

[glitch]

42. Gotta keep those Carlyle profits up. Whatever happened to the Blair

going to Carlyle after he leaves office story? That sure dropped awfully fast.

Enjoy your profits in hell boys.

[leftofthedial]

35. so Brits dress as Arabs to ambush Iraqi police patrols

and oddly Western looking "Arabs" kidnap Murkan and other coalition personnel

and enough explosives to fuel the insurrection for a generation are left unguarded by our fuhrer's troops and stolen

We may literally be our own worst enemy.

[DoYouEverWonder]

43. Reminds me of when they beheaded Nick Berg

n/t

[leftofthedial]

45. "they"?

[DoYouEverWonder]

48. The black ops guys

the same sort that dress up has arabs and bomb police stations.

[leftofthedial]

58. I no longer trust or believe a single thing my government

or the US media says

without independent verification

[Just Me]

64. I was part of the "investigative" DU team. We all concluded Sp Ops.

The filming was clearly "produced, proofed, edited and marketed". The film was a helluva lot easier to stomach than our conclusions.

Oh, yes,...and we will NEVER forget that Berg's independent company was on Free Republic's "hit list",...we will NEVER EVER FORGET THAT!!!

[stickdog]

72. Don't forget the self-claimed last witness to see Berg alive.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=104&topic_id=1615190&mesg_id=1615190

The classic picture of Aziz al-Taee with Wolfy:

http://web.archive.org/web/20031221131414/http://aicc.us/MR+AND+MRS+HAKAK+PAUL+WOLFWITIZ+AND+AZIZ+ALTAEE-150.jpg

[progressivebydesign]

37. Mercenaries killing Iraqi police? Then Brittish military springs them?

This just can't be good...

[bigbrother05]

38. Saw it a bit ago on ITV News

Said it was 6 tanks that broke through the walls to get the men out. Newscaster said that such action was unprecedented for UK military. Also commented that over 100 Iraqi prisoners escaped during the incident.

Sounds like things are really getting out of hand. How long before the last chopper leaves Saigon, oops, I mean Baghdad?

[Seansky]

39. things are falling apart really fast for the RW, so much for the law &

order * and his cronies brought to Iraq.

[The Stranger]

40. Confirming that it was a FALSE FLAG operation.

[Dark]

51. Oh, and 150 prisoners also escaped. . .

Could they be Al Qaeda? Who knows?

But, at least it didn't involve an intern and a blow job.

[meganmonkey]

46. un-fucking-believable.

x(

[Disturbed]

52. A tinfoil hat theory

The police in Basra were not doing enough to route out the Insurgency so the Brits decided to kill a few Iraqi police to spur them to action.

[Why Syzygy]

60. Um.

A reduction in forces. Always a good plan?

JEEZIZ CHRIST! American taxpayers are paying to recruit and TRAIN the Ira*qi POLICE FORCE. So, our 'allies' go in and shoot them?
How does that help?

This smells. I do not think they can get away with this kind of bungled 'psy ops'. Or whatever the hell it is.

The news reports say Basra was one of the most peaceful locations. Insurgents? Where? Oh, lookie over there! The coalition!

Again. JEEZIZ CHRIST!

[FormerOstrich]

49. Wait......not tanks....talks....typo (lol)

Now they are reporting it wasn't tanks. The negotiated thier release. I think those tanks speak volumes. :wtf:

UK says 2 soldiers freed in Iraq after talks

LONDON, Sept 19 (Reuters) - Britain denied reports on Monday that its troops stormed a prison in southern Iraq to free two British soldiers, saying the pair were released after negotiations.

"We've heard nothing to suggest we stormed the prison," a defence ministry spokesman in London said. "We understand there were negotiations."

An Iraqi interior ministry official earlier said British tanks smashed into a prison in Basra to free two undercover British soldiers seized on Monday by Iraqi forces.

The official said British troops using half a dozen tanks stormed the jail, allowing dozens of Iraqi prisoners to escape during the raid.

The British defence ministry spokesman said he had no more details of the soldiers' release.

British Defence Secretary John Reid said in a statement that the two men, who have not been named, were back with British forces.

"I can confirm that the two British service personnel detained earlier today by the IPS (Iraq Police Service), have now been released and are back with British forces," he said.

"The situation in Basra is currently calmer after a day of disturbances. At this stage it is not possible to be certain why these disturbances began."

He said British soldiers in armoured vehicles attacked by crowds throwing petrol bombs and stones suffered minor injuries and would soon return to duty.

http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/L19636664.htm

[DrDebug]

55. Cover up

There's nothing to see here.



That's not a tank. That's talk. Hmm...

[Why Syzygy]

56. Of course we know

that "talks" equal "tanks" in this crazy affair? Why talk when you can blow a country and it's inhabitants into smithereens?

[stevietheman]

50. Two words: FALSE SOVEREIGNTY. n/t

n/t

[Why Syzygy]

53. Who's FREEDOMS?

are we talking about here? MY GAWED AMIGHTY!

Did anyone ever say war is insane. Let me state that now.

BRING THEM HOME AND LEAVE THEM ALONE!

[Finder]

57. Checkmate. (nt)

[soulcore]

59. what. the. fuck. n/t

[gulfcoastliberal]

61. Maybe the Iraqi gov't should use tanks to smash into Abu Ghraib?

You know, to release their citizens?

[Poiuyt]

62. So is this what would happen if Bush and Blair were sent to The Hague?

[guruoo]

63. CNN didn't mention the 'breakout' at all...

All they said was that the Iraqis released the Brits.

[Mayberry Machiavelli]

66. Ummm... no. If so, they've certainly changed their coverage (link)

http://www.cnn.com/2005/WORLD/meast/09/20/iraq.main/index.html

[slaveplanet]

65. Crazy Freepers

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1487501/posts?q=1&&page=51

most are certifiable

the city's governor called the move a "barbaric act of aggression".

Let's see....allowing the local constabulary arrest a couple of SAS was ok?
and then allowing crowds to attack and set fire to Brit armor
was ok?
These bastards hardly deserve our help....
I say we pull out and cleanse the region with Neutron weapons.
69 posted on 09/19/2005 3:31:13 PM PDT by injin

some are confused

I don't understand the cheering.

The Iraqis are not our enemy now. The people in charge are, presumably, friends of democracy. Why were these Brits arrested? Did they REALLY fire on Iraqi police?

I want some answers and a good explanation for what happened here before I cheer such a "rescue" that also freed 150 REAL prisoners.

Can anybody tell me what the heck this is about? I really don't understand it.
103 posted on 09/20/2005 1:36:13 AM PDT by Bubbatuck (Demonrats: The End is Near!)

If the redcoats ever attacked us again...it's pretty clear who's side they'd be on

[SodoffBush]

71. They must have had some very important information

that Bush/Blair didn't want released.