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| Iraq |
| US Troops Soon Able to Shoot Looters on Sight |
| 2003-05-14 |
| Edited for brevity. United States military forces in Iraq will have the authority to shoot looters on sight under a tough new security setup that will include hiring more police officers and banning ranking members of the Baath Party from public service, American officials said today. The far more muscular approach to bringing order to postwar Iraq was described by the new American administrator, L. Paul Bremer, at a meeting of senior staff members today, the officials said. On Wednesday, Mr. Bremer is expected to meet with the leaders of Iraqi political groups that are seeking to form an interim government by the end of the month. "He made it very clear that he is now in charge," said an official who attended the meeting today. "I think you are going to see a change in the rules of engagement within a few days to get the situation under control." Asked what this meant, the official replied, "They are going to start shooting a few looters so that the word gets around" that assaults on property, the hijacking of automobiles and violent crimes will be dealt with using deadly force. How Iraqis will be informed of the new rules is not clear. American officials in Iraq have access to United States-financed radio stations, which could broadcast the changes. From the NY Times, so take it with a grain of salt... It could be entirely made up! Drudge has got a bunch of stories about that crisis as well. |
| Posted by:Dar |
| #6 "Well, don't shoot ME! I don't even own a lute." -- Fabulous Furry Freak Bros. |
| Posted by: Anonymous 2003-05-14 15:06:34 |
| #5 Actually, it's basically the same thing I read in an AP article on Nando Times, so it's pretty legitimate. Even the NYT can be "accurate" about facts now and then. It's just a bit sloppy about sources, about proper atribution, and sloppy spelling and grammar. |
| Posted by: Old Patriot 2003-05-14 14:55:00 |
| #4 The New York Times: Oops! U.S. military officials, under pressure because of persistent lawlessness in Iraq, insisted Wednesday they were "aggressively targeting" looters and were now holding suspects for about three weeks. They said, however, they would not authorize a shoot-to-kill policy. "We are aggressively targeting looters, but we're not going to go out and shoot children that are picking up a piece of wood out of a factory and carrying it away or a bag of cement," Maj. Gen. Buford Blount III, commander of the Army's 3rd Infantry, told reporters in Baghdad. "Our soldiers have the right to defend themselves, and have. And if a looter is carrying a weapon and the soldier feels threatened, of course he is going to engage." |
| Posted by: Steve 2003-05-14 13:46:44 |
| #3 The New York Times: All the news that fits, we print. |
| Posted by: Hiryu 2003-05-14 12:32:13 |
| #2 Hey now wait a minute. I don't mind the stories from DEBKA or the North Koreans, but posting an article from the NY Times really is a low point for this board. Admittedly there was a disclaimer, but Fred's got to maintain some standards. |
| Posted by: Matt 2003-05-14 11:43:22 |
| #1 Still a lot of prayer needed over there, if one might take a moment. |
| Posted by: Lucky 2003-05-14 10:56:28 |