It seems like Al-Zarqawi may have been alive when the troops arrived on the scene.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/worldlatest/story/0,,-5877468,00.html BAGHDAD, Iraq (AP) - U.S. officials have altered their account of the death of Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, saying he was alive and partly conscious after bombs destroyed his hideout, and an Iraqi man raised fresh questions Saturday about the events surrounding the end of Iraq's most-wanted militant.
The man, who lived near the scene of the bombing, claimed in an interview with AP Television News to have seen U.S. soldiers beating an injured man resembling al-Zarqawi until blood flowed from the man's nose.
When asked about the man's allegations, military spokesman Maj. Gen. William Caldwell said he would check. In Washington, Pentagon spokesman Jeffrey Gordon said Saturday he was unaware of the claim.
The Iraqi, identified as Mohammed Ahmed, claimed that residents put the man in an ambulance before U.S. forces arrived. The American military team then pulled the man from the ambulance and beat him, Ahmed said. He gave a similar account to The Washington Post. (rest snipped)
Not too surprising that the account of one random Iraqi would be given so much creedence over the accounts of all the Iraqi military and (god forbid) US military that were there.
As of 2/28/05: 101 pounds since December 7, 2004 OFFICIAL THREE-MONTH COUNT: 112 pounds on March 9, 2005 OFFICIAL SIX-MONTH COUNT: 142 pounds on June 8, 2005 OFFICIAL ONE YEAR COUNT: 187 pounds on December 7, 2005 As of 2/27/06: 202 pounds "I've lost a heavyweight" As of 5/24/06: 216 pounds
Originally posted by Eddie FamousNot too surprising that the account of one random Iraqi would be given so much creedence over the accounts of all the Iraqi military and (god forbid) US military that were there.
What has the US military done since going over there to earn ANY credibility? How can anyone take anything the US military says at face value? Their story has now already changed once on how he died.
And the conduct of our military since occupying (I'm sorry, "liberating") Iraq leaves me with NO problem believing this:
residents put the man in an ambulance before U.S. forces arrived. The American military team then pulled the man from the ambulance and beat him
Damn, I waited too long to reply and the thread has passed my by... But a few points:
1) To those who find it hard to understand why this would lead to cheering in a bar. I'm gonna go out on a limb here and guess that you've probably never served in the military. And I might go so far to guess you don't even know anyone serving in the military. Because that's what elicited a cheer from me. Zarqawi was directly or indirectly responsible for the killing or wounding of hundreds of our soldiers. And in his spare time, he's been fanning the flames of a sectarian war between the Sunni and the Shia. He was just an evil cock-sucking Mother-Fucker. No gray area, no "well, at least he..." - NOTHING! And I couldn't be happier that he's dead. And just a rhetorical question. Whould you cheer if a bomb had struck Osama Bin Laden?
2) To those who believe U.S. soldiers took al-Zarqawi out of an ambulance and beat him to death (or whatever that vague news story implies.) So, this guy suvives the bomb blast, which killed 7 other people and destoyed the fortified compound, with just a bloody nose? Riiiggghht! And then the U.S. soldiers, in their fanatical bloodlust, took him out of the ambulance and beat him to death? I'm SOLD! Look, the concussive blast from those two bombs would have killed him, even if he escaped the rubble or flames. And on many occasions the U.S. has said it would prefer him alive, but didn't want to risk his escape (ala Bin Laden at Tora Bora) So, even if he had somehow survived the bombing with just a bloody nose, they probably would have been elated to take him into custody. This whole cynicism about the military... 99.9% of those guys do the right thing, the moral thing, the honorable thing, even in the face of circumstances no one over here can begin to imagine. They're not all baby-killers and lying murderers.
3. To those of you who wonder what kind of bar shows Nightline. It's quite simple. Mavs-Heat Game 1 was on every single TV in the place, and when it ended, none of the channels were changed. After an un-eventful local news (which didn't have the cockpit bombing footage, but did if I recall have footage of a bear falling out of a tree.) Nightline came on.
Originally posted by Eddie FamousNot too surprising that the account of one random Iraqi would be given so much creedence over the accounts of all the Iraqi military and (god forbid) US military that were there.
What has the US military done since going over there to earn ANY credibility? How can anyone take anything the US military says at face value? Their story has now already changed once on how he died.
And the conduct of our military since occupying (I'm sorry, "liberating") Iraq leaves me with NO problem believing this:
residents put the man in an ambulance before U.S. forces arrived. The American military team then pulled the man from the ambulance and beat him
I'm sorry I can't feel sympathy for a man who had none himself.
If there is video of U.S. troops beating al-Zarqawi(and there seems to be video of almost everything else that happens in the world these days), I beg and plead for at least one broadcast or cable network to hire David Crockett to do the voiceover on the piece. Beat him like a dog. Unfortunately they probably didn't grease the bomb with pig entrails. Blackjack Pershing would have ordered that done. As for the cheering over the bomb dropping: In general, the U.S. public loves seeing high priced/high tech toys blowing things up. That is why Desert Storm was popular, and that is why the war in Iraq was popular during its initial phases. When war is a video game, the public is in favor of it. When war is street to street combat, the public is opposed.
Robert E. Lee is quoted as saying "It is well that war is so terrible— otherwise we should grow too fond of it." Sometimes wars are necessary, and sometimes people need killing, but I'm not sure how much pleasure we should derive from that.
The Bored are already here. Idle hands are the devil's workshop. And no... we won't kill dolphins. But koalas are fair game.
Clearly, Mrs Sheehan has had a very, very traumatic experience and, in addition, she has allowed herself to be influenced by some people who, I believe, don't care one whit about her, but about their agenda.