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| Iraq |
| Snipers kill 16 pilgrims in Baghdad |
| 2006-08-20 |
| Snipers fired on a major Shiite religious procession in Baghdad Sunday, killing at least 16 pilgrims and injuring 230, officials said. Four suspected gunmen were shot dead by police. The attacks occurred from rooftops along several points of the procession toward the shrine of Imam Moussa Kadhim in north Baghdad. They occurred in three predominantly Sunni districts — Fadhil, Haifa and Saligh — Health Ministry spokesman Qassim Allawi told The Associated Press. Security forces killed two snipers in Fadhil and two suspected insurgents who tried to mingle with the crowed in the mixed neighborhood of Zafraniyah, police said. In one neighborhood, security forces and Shiite militias were seen exchanging gunfire with unseen assailants. Gunfire echoed in the streets as people ran for cover. The government had deployed thousands of troops and banned private vehicles from the streets to prevent attacks during the two-day commemoration marking the death in 799 of Imam Moussa ibn Jaafar al-Kadhim, one of 12 Shiite saints. Tens of thousands of Shiites participated in the religious procession Sunday, chanting Islamic slogans and wearing white shrouds to symbolize their willingness to die for Islam. "We heed your call, Oh Imam!" the pilgrims sang, beating their chest and flagellating themselves with steel chains in a traditional Shiite expression of grief. A security cordon was thrown around golden-domed shrine where the imam is buried, and all pilgrims were frisked before entering. Troops posted on rooftops closely watched the devout who waved the green flag of Islam and banners of their tribes in vibrant colors. |
| Posted by:ed |
| #8 The 230 are from the ensuing panic. Shooting into a packed crowd does not a ‘sniper’ make. Just some yahoo [Gulliver’s Travel type] spraying a crowd at a greater than normal distance. However, it is MSM which can not tell the difference between a tank and an APC or self-propelled artillery. The ever more traditional - fake but true. |
| Posted by: Unimble Elmomort5902 2006-08-20 22:01 |
| #7 What kind of "snipers" kill 16 and injure 230? |
| Posted by: gromgoru 2006-08-20 19:29 |
| #6 Funny how the mind works - the first time I went to Austin, about 1990 - as soon as I saw the tower, I said, "Charles Whitman" and the Texans in the car were impressed. My daughter graduated from UT three years ago, and the almost-ex-USMC reservist is still enrolled. |
| Posted by: Bobby 2006-08-20 17:17 |
| #5 Yes, and and one of the coppers blew him away with a shotgun, from Wikipedia; Which of the officers actually killed Whitman has been hotly disputed as both later claimed that they had been the one to kill him, but by any measure McCoy fired his shotgun twice, and Martinez fired six rounds from his revolver before taking the shotgun and approaching the limp Whitman and firing again point-blank Well done Officer Martinez! |
| Posted by: Tony (UK) 2006-08-20 13:17 |
| #4 Now, Charles Whitman - that's what I call a sniper. Yep, in some sick way. Compare and contrast the actions of the police in Texas with the actions of the Colorodo police during the Columbine horror. Once the 2 Texas coppers cleared the killing zone they went straight up the tower and never looked back. Didn't do much getting ready. |
| Posted by: 6 2006-08-20 12:34 |
| #3 Not exactly a "scoop" in foreign internal defense (FID) curriculum, but the undisputable antedote for enemy snipers are your own very well trained own snipers. Where were they? |
| Posted by: Besoeker 2006-08-20 11:45 |
| #2 The ones that died are true martyrs. |
| Posted by: BrerRabbit 2006-08-20 11:15 |
| #1 These guys are palookas who don't deserve the title of sniper. Now, Charles Whitman - that's what I call a sniper. |
| Posted by: Zhang Fei 2006-08-20 10:27 |