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The War Profiteers - War Crimes,
Kidnappings, Torture and Big Money |
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September 6th,
2007 - US Air Strikes in Baghdad Kill 14 Civilians |
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US Air Strikes in Baghdad Kill
14 Civilians Iraqi officials say US strikes kill civilians sleeping in own homes,
destroyed several houses. By Ahmed al-Rubaye Middle East Online September 6, 2007 US air strikes on a Baghdad
neighbourhood before dawn on Thursday killed 14 civilians while they were
sleeping and destroyed several houses, angry residents and Iraqi officials
said. Defence and interior
ministry officials said US helicopters fired on houses in the Al-Washash
neighbourhood of Mansour district in west Baghdad between 2.00 am and 3.00 am
while in pursuit of insurgents. "The attacks on the
houses took place while people were sleeping. There were no clashes. The area
had been quiet," said an interior ministry official who did not want to
be named. At least 10 people were
wounded and were admitted to the nearby Al-Yarmuk hospital. "Two to five houses
were destroyed. Among the wounded are several women," the official said. Abu Ali Saad, a resident of
the mainly-Shiite Al-Washash enclave in the middle of the Sunni-majority
Mansour neighbourhood, said US military vehicles had arrived in large numbers
during the night. "There were tanks and
armoured vehicles and many troops," 35-year-old Saad said while
surveying the rubble of his neighbour's house. "The tanks started
firing then the helicopters came. Missiles were fired from the air. Houses
were destroyed. A family of five were killed in this house," he said,
referring to his neighbours. "We are a peaceful
neighbourhood. There are no militia here. There were no exchanges of fire. We
were all sleeping." Three houses were completely
destroyed while two were partly damaged. Amid the rubble of one house
was a mattress covered in blood with human body parts scattered around.
Neighbours said a family of six had been killed in the house, including a
12-year-old girl. Bloodstains could also be
seen amid the wreckage of the other houses, where angry residents gathered to
denounce the US military. "They prevented me from
trying to get two of my wounded neighbours to hospital," said Ammar
Assem. "They fired on my car
when I tried to leave the area. I had to go back." Assem said one of the houses
had been set ablaze but that the US military had prevented fire engines from
reaching the scene. "Neighbours all got
buckets of water and managed to put the fire out eventually," he said. US military officials could
not immediately be reached for comment. Washington has deployed an
extra 28,500 troops as part of a "surge" in Baghdad and surrounding
areas aimed at quelling sectarian violence that has killed thousands of
Iraqis since it erupted 18 months ago. US forces say the surge is
having an impact, and that the number of roadside bombs in the Iraqi capital
has dropped significantly since the operation was launched on February 14. However, militia are still
active and according to Iraqi government figures, the number of civilians
killed in August rose to almost 1,800, the second highest monthly toll since
the extra troops arrived. The White House is due to
report to the US Congress by September 15 on whether the surge is having an
impact, amid calls by Democrats for a phased withdrawal of US troops from
Iraq. In other violence, a bomb
exploded near a line of workers seeking daily employment in Baghdad's
southeastern Zafaraniya district, killing one worker and wounding five, a
defence ministry official said. External link: http://www.middle-east-online.com/english/?id=22018 |