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US Soldiers Executed, Iraqi Civilians Killed |
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Wednesday, 21 June 2006The bodies of two missing US soldiers were found on Tuesday, June 20, showing signs of torture, while 13 innocent civilians, including a child, were killed in a new US raid in Baquba, northwest of Baghdad.
"The two US soldiers were found in the Yusifiyah area near the power station and unfortunately their bodies show that they had been tortured and then killed viciously," General Abdul Aziz Mohammed of the Iraqi defense ministry told reporters, Agence France-Presse (AFP) said.
The self-styled Mujahedeen Shura Council, which comprises five groups led by Al-Qaeda in Iraq, immediately claimed the execution of Kristian Menchaca, 23, and Thomas L. Tucker, 25.
"The two crusaders taken hostage have been executed by having their throats cut," it said in a Web statement.
It said Abu Hamza al-Muhajer, the successor to Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, who was killed in a US strike on June 7, had beheaded them.
Islam pays great attention to observing the rights of captives and prisoners of war. It absolutely forbids starving or abusing them in any way, or mutilating their corpses.
The US soldiers went missing Friday night after they came under attack at a traffic control point near Yusifiyah, along the Euphrates River. One soldier was also killed in the attack.
The US military had launched a massive hunt for Menchaca and Tucker with nearly 8,000 troops searching for them by land, water and air.
The latest fatalities brought the US military death toll in Iraq since the March 2003 invasion of the Arab country to 2,502, according to an AFP count based on Pentagon figures.
Kidnappings of US service members have been rare despite the presence of about 130,000 forces in Iraq.
The last US soldier to be captured was Sgt. Keith M. Maupin of, who was taken on April 9, 2004 after his fuel convoy was ambushed.
Two months later, a tape on Al-Jazeera purported to show a captive US soldier shot, but the Army ruled it was inconclusive and remains listed as missing.
More Civilian Killings
In a separate incident, Iraqi police and witnesses said 13 Iraqi civilians, including a child, were killed by US soldiers in Baquba, northwest of Baghdad, giving a conflicting version of the US army's.
They said the victims were all poultry farm workers who had been sleeping in the fields of Bushaheen village in an area known as Al-Salam (peace), some 90 kilometers from Baghdad, when US troops raided the area, reported AFP.
Hussam Shamel said he, his three brothers and father were sleeping in the fields with other workers because of the summer heat.
"I hid and saw them shoot my brother Wissam after he started running," Shamel told AFP.
He said a second brother, Hisham, was also killed in the raid while his father and a third brother were missing.
Shamel and other witnesses said no one in the fields opened fire at the American soldiers.
Pools of blood and shreds of clothing could still be seen at the scene.
Witnesses said that a total of nine people were killed in the fields while four others died when soldiers stormed surrounding homes.
Their claim was backed up by Hadi Al-Azzawi from a human rights organization in Baquba, while the main hospital in the city confirmed it had received 13 bodies.
The US army said in a statement that it killed 15 "terrorists" and detained three suspects during simultaneous raids north of Baquba.
US soldiers are accused of being involved in a string of cold-blood killing of Iraqi civilians, including children and women, in the cities of Haditha and Ishaqi in November and March respectively.
Haditha residents said the two families, including young children and women, were shot dead in their homes by US troops.
Congressman John Murtha has accused the military of trying to "cover up" the civilian killings.
US Soldiers Charged
Three US soldiers have been charged with premeditated murder and other offenses for shooting to death three detainees in Iraq, the New York Times reported Tuesday.
"The soldiers are currently in pre-trial confinement awaiting an Article 32 hearing to determine if sufficient evidence exists for the case to be referred to court-martial," the military said.
Staff Sergeant Raymond L. Girouard, Specialist William B. Hunsaker and Private First Class Corey Clagett shot and killed the three unidentified men near the Muthana Chemical Complex in Salaheddin province on May 9, according to charge sheets filed June 15.
They are charged with premeditated murder, attempted murder, conspiracy, communicating a threat and obstructing justice.
An investigation was ordered the same day as the killings after a soldier raised suspicions about the deaths.
Although neither the charge sheets nor officials said who raised the suspicions, the soldiers are accused of having threatened to kill Private First Class Bradley Mason if he spoke about the killings.
"You better not say anything or I swear I will kill you," Girouard was quoted in the charge sheets as saying.
It was unclear who the detainees were and why they were taken into custody.
Asked about the circumstances, a military official indicated that the soldiers tried to cover up the deaths by saying the Iraqis were killed while trying to escape.
AFP via IslamOnline.net & News Agencies
June 20, 2006 |
Wednesday, 21 June 2006
Iraq
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