Van Helsing
My glass is half empty.
- Joined
- Apr 23, 2004
- Messages
- 1,390
Yet another bungled air strike by the U S
A U.S. military plane fired missiles Saturday into a residential neighborhood in Fallujah, killing at least 20 people and leveling houses in the restive Sunni Muslim city, police and residents said.
It was the first significant U.S. military action in the city since Marines ended a bloody three-week siege against insurgents. Since the U.S. forces left, residents have said that extremist influence in the city, west of Baghdad, has only grown.
U.S. Marines declined comment and referred queries to the U.S. command, which said it had no comment.
In the strike, at least two houses were destroyed and six others were damaged in the poor neighborhood.
At least 20 bodies were counted, and they were taken for burial immediately at the city's "martyrs' cemetery in accordance with Islamic custom of burying the dead quickly. At least three women and five children were among the dead.
Two other people died at the hospital, officials there said.
"At 9:30 a.m., a U.S. plane shot two missiles on this residential area," said the Fallujah police chief, Sabbar al-Janabi, as he surveyed the wreckage. "Scores were killed and injured. This picture speaks for itself."
It was not clear what the target was, but U.S. officials have said Jordanian-born terrorist Abu Musab al-Zarqawi may be hiding in the city.
In Fallujah, rescue workers combed the scene, searching the rubble for other victims. Slabs of concrete and steel reinforcing bars were upended and twisted, Associated Press Television News footage showed.
Water pooled from a 20-foot-crater in front of one of the destroyed houses, apparently from where one of the missiles struck. One man displayed several Qurans burned in the strikes.
Outraged residents accused the Americans of trying to inflict maximum damaged by firing two strikes one first to attack and another to kill the rescuers.
"The number of casualties is so high because after the first missile we jumped to rescue the victims," said Wissam Ali Hamad. "The second missile killed those trying to carry out the rescue."
THESE KINDS OF INDISCRIMINATE ATTACKS MUST STOP
A U.S. military plane fired missiles Saturday into a residential neighborhood in Fallujah, killing at least 20 people and leveling houses in the restive Sunni Muslim city, police and residents said.
It was the first significant U.S. military action in the city since Marines ended a bloody three-week siege against insurgents. Since the U.S. forces left, residents have said that extremist influence in the city, west of Baghdad, has only grown.
U.S. Marines declined comment and referred queries to the U.S. command, which said it had no comment.

In the strike, at least two houses were destroyed and six others were damaged in the poor neighborhood.
At least 20 bodies were counted, and they were taken for burial immediately at the city's "martyrs' cemetery in accordance with Islamic custom of burying the dead quickly. At least three women and five children were among the dead.
Two other people died at the hospital, officials there said.
"At 9:30 a.m., a U.S. plane shot two missiles on this residential area," said the Fallujah police chief, Sabbar al-Janabi, as he surveyed the wreckage. "Scores were killed and injured. This picture speaks for itself."
It was not clear what the target was, but U.S. officials have said Jordanian-born terrorist Abu Musab al-Zarqawi may be hiding in the city.
In Fallujah, rescue workers combed the scene, searching the rubble for other victims. Slabs of concrete and steel reinforcing bars were upended and twisted, Associated Press Television News footage showed.
Water pooled from a 20-foot-crater in front of one of the destroyed houses, apparently from where one of the missiles struck. One man displayed several Qurans burned in the strikes.
Outraged residents accused the Americans of trying to inflict maximum damaged by firing two strikes one first to attack and another to kill the rescuers.
"The number of casualties is so high because after the first missile we jumped to rescue the victims," said Wissam Ali Hamad. "The second missile killed those trying to carry out the rescue."
THESE KINDS OF INDISCRIMINATE ATTACKS MUST STOP
