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Iraq militants show downed US ’copter in video

DUBAI - Iraqi militants who claimed the downing of a US helicopter issued a video apparently showing parts of the wreckage, Al Jazeera television said on Monday.

It aired the footage from the Rashedeen Army, which appeared to show part of the helicopter’s fuselage and rotor lying in a field. The video also showed helicopters circling the site.

Al Jazeera said it could not authenticate the video.

The US military said on Monday that two of its pilots died after their helicopter crashed in southwest of Baghdad on Saturday. The Rashedeen Army had claimed the shooting near the town of Yusufiya, an area that sees considerable Sunni insurgent activity just southwest of the capital.

Insurgents have shot down several military helicopters since the US-led invasion in 2003 and losses of heavy troop carriers have accounted for some of the largest casualty figures.

Video Claims to Show Pilot Being Dragged

By NADIA ABOU EL-MAGD, Associated Press Writer

CAIRO, Egypt - A video posted on the Internet Wednesday in the name of an extremist group claimed to show Iraqi insurgents dragging the burning body of a U.S. pilot on the ground after the crash of an Apache helicopter.

Parts of the video were blurry, and the face of the man being dragged was not shown. His clothes were so tattered it was impossible to tell if he was wearing an American military uniform.

The U.S. military condemned the posting and said that although reports of a Web site video "suggest that terrorists removed part of a body from the crash site, the authenticity of the video cannot be confirmed."

"We are outraged that anyone would create and publish such a despicable video for public exposure," U.S. military spokesman Lt. Col. Jonathan Withington said.

The video, posted by a group calling itself the Shura Council of Mujahedeen, claimed that its military wing had shot down the craft, which the U.S. military said went down Saturday.

According to statements on Islamist Web sites, the Mujahedeen Shura Council was organized in January to consolidate al-Qaida in Iraq and other insurgent groups. The move was seen as an effort by Iraqi insurgents to lower the profile of al-Qaida leader Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, a Jordanian, whose mass attacks against Shiite civilians have tarnished the image of the insurgents among many Iraqis.

The footage in the video, which also was e-mailed to reporters, was blurry but the helicopter could be seen clearly. However, it was not possible to see if it had U.S. markings.

The video also clearly showed the bloody, burning body of a man being dragged through a field. The extremist group, in audio attached to the video, said he was a U.S. helicopter pilot.

In its statement, the U.S. military said it confirmed that the two pilots in the downed helicopter had died, and it had recovered "all available remains found on the scene, given the catastrophic nature of the crash."

The AH-64D Apache Longbow crashed due to possible hostile fire west of Yousifiyah while conducting a combat air patrol, the military said.

CAIRO, Egypt (AP) A TERRORIST group has posted an Internet video that claims to show AL QUEDA OPERATIVES dragging the burning body of a U.S. helicopter pilot on the ground.

If only the Media was on our side or reported accurately what is happening.

The MSM - DEAD FAILURE REPORT

You only have value as a soldier in the MSM if you DIE or SCREW UP. Then you can be used as an anti-war prop.

Video Claims to Show Pilot Being Dragged By NADIA ABOU EL-MAGD,
Associated Press Writer 2 hours, 1 minute ago

A video posted on the Internet Wednesday in the name of an extremist group claimed to show Iraqi insurgents dragging the burning body of a U.S. pilot on the ground after the crash of an Apache helicopter.

Parts of the video were blurry, and the face of the man being dragged was not shown. His clothes were so tattered it was impossible to tell if he was wearing an American military uniform, but he appeared to be wearing military fatigues.

The U.S. military condemned the posting and said that although reports of a Web site video "suggest that terrorists removed part of a body from the crash site, the authenticity of the video cannot be confirmed."

"We are outraged that anyone would create and publish such a despicable video for public exposure," U.S. military spokesman Lt. Col. Jonathan Withington said.

The video, posted by a group calling itself the Shura Council of Mujahedeen, claimed that its military wing had shot down the craft, which the U.S. military said went down Saturday.

According to statements on Islamist Web sites, the Mujahedeen Shura Council was organized in January to consolidate al-Qaida in Iraq and other insurgent groups. The move was seen as an effort by insurgents to lower the profile of al-Qaida leader Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, a Jordanian, whose mass attacks against Shiite civilians have tarnished the image of the insurgents among many Iraqis.

The video was blurry, but the helicopter could be seen clearly. It showed the outlines of the craft's destroyed blades and blood on various jagged pieces of wreckage spread over a field. However, it was not possible to see if the helicopter had U.S. markings.

The video also clearly showed the bloodied, burning body of a man being dragged by several other men through a field. Before the body was moved, the camera zoomed in on what appeared to be his waistline, which showed a scrap of underwear with the brand name "Hanes" on it. The man also appeared to be wearing some type of camouflage fatigues.

In its statement, the U.S. military said it confirmed the two pilots had died, and it had recovered "all available remains found on the scene, given the catastrophic nature of the crash."

The AH-64D Apache Longbow crashed about 5:30 p.m. Saturday due to possible hostile fire west of Youssifiyah while conducting a combat air patrol, the military said. Youssifiyah is about 10 miles southwest of Baghdad.

About 24 hours later, the military said the pilots were "presumed dead" and that recovery efforts were under way, indicating they had not fully secured the site or retrieved the bodies.

Youssifiyah is located in the "triangle of death," a religiously mixed area notorious for attacks by Sunni extremists against Shiites traveling between Baghdad and religious shrines south of the capital.

The Albany (N.Y.) Times Union reported that Capt. Timothy Moshier, 25, of Bethlehem, N.Y., was killed Saturday when the Apache helicopter he was piloting crashed about the same time and place southwest of Baghdad. His survivors include his wife, Katherine, and their 10-month-old daughter, Natalie, the newspaper said.

Pentagon says chopper did crash, but says can't confirm video's authenticity

A video posted Wednesday on the Internet in the name of an extremist group claimed to show Iraqi insurgents dragging the burning body of a U.S. pilot on the ground after the crash of an Apache helicopter.

Parts of the video were blurry, and the face of the man was not shown. His clothes were so tattered it was impossible to tell if he was wearing an American military uniform, but he appeared to be wearing military fatigues.

The U.S. military condemned the posting and said that although reports of a Web site video "suggest that terrorists removed part of a body from the crash site, the authenticity of the video cannot be confirmed."

The U.S. military said an AH-64D Apache Longbow crashed about 5:30 p.m. Saturday due to possible hostile fire west of Youssifiyah, about 10 miles southwest of Baghdad, while conducting a combat air patrol.

The time and date stamp on the video was Sunday, April 2, and runs from 4:03 p.m. to 4:08 p.m. The stamp shows the minutes and seconds do not run sequentially and the scenes appear disjointed, suggesting the tape was altered.

"We are outraged that anyone would create and publish such a despicable video for public exposure," U.S. military spokesman Lt. Col. Jonathan Withington said.

On Sunday, the military said the pilots were "presumed dead" and that recovery efforts were under way, indicating they had not fully secured the site or retrieved the bodies. The military later identified the pilots killed as Capt. Timothy J. Moshier, 25, of Albany, N.Y., and Chief Warrant Officer 3 Michael L. Hartwick, of Orrick, Mo.

The video, posted by a group calling itself the Shura Council of Mujahedeen, claimed its military wing had shot down the aircraft.

According to statements on Islamist Web sites, the Mujahedeen Shura Council was organized in January to consolidate al-Qaida in Iraq and other insurgent groups. The move was seen as a bid by insurgents to lower the profile of al-Qaida leader Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, a Jordanian, whose mass attacks against Shiite civilians have tarnished the image of the insurgents among many Iraqis.

The video was blurry but the burning helicopter could be seen clearly. It showed the outlines of its destroyed blades and blood on various jagged pieces of wreckage spread over a field. It was not possible, however, to see if it had U.S. markings.

The video also clearly showed the bloodied, burning body of a man being dragged by other men through a field. Before the body was moved, the camera zoomed in on what appeared to be his waistline, which showed a scrap of underwear with the brand name "Hanes" on it. The man also appeared to be wearing camouflage fatigues.

The U.S. military said it had recovered "all available remains found on the scene, given the catastrophic nature of the crash."

In political developments, Prime Minister Ibrahim al-Jaafari said he won't abandon his bid for a second term to break the deadlock over a new government, and more than 1,000 of his supporters rallied in the holy city of Karbala, urging an end to "U.S. interference" in Iraqi politics.

Although parliament may have to decide al-Jaafari's future, Shiite officials said they are reluctant until there is a deal among all ethnic- and religious-based parties, including an agreement on who will be the new president.

U.S. officials believe a broad-based government of Shiites, Sunni Arabs and Kurds offers the only hope for reversing Iraq's slide into anarchy. Without such a government, the Americans cannot begin withdrawing troops.

Talks on a unity government stalled after Sunni Arab and Kurdish officials said they would not accept al-Jaafari, who won the nomination of the dominant Shiite bloc in balloting among Shiite lawmakers in February.

Al-Jaafari told The Guardian newspaper he was rejecting calls to give up the nomination of his Shiite bloc "to protect democracy in Iraq." He added that the Iraqi people "will react if they see the rules of democracy being disobeyed. Everyone should stick to democratic mechanisms no matter whether they disagree with the person."

During an interview Tuesday with the BBC, Vice President Adil Abdul-Mahdi said he met with al-Jaafari and urged him to give up the nomination to break the logjam, but al-Jaafari refused.

President Jalal Talabani, a Kurd and an al-Jaafari opponent, referred to the parliamentary option in an interview published Wednesday by the Saudi daily Al Madina.

"Consultations are taking place quickly," Talabani said. "We hope they will not take much longer than this, and if the (Shiites) stick by their stand on nominating Ibrahim al-Jaafari, then we will resort to parliament."

Its unclear how parliament will resolve the standoff. The constitution says the president must nominate the candidate of the largest bloc -- the Shiites. The prime minister-designate then presents his Cabinet for approval by a majority of all 275 members.

Under the constitution, however, parliament must first elect a new president and two vice presidents by a two-thirds vote. With Talabani's term also ending, it is unclear whether he would have the authority to appoint a prime minister, and the Shiites could block his re-election.

In violence Wednesday:

Two car bombs in the capital killed one woman and wounded 28.

A suicide car bomb exploded at a joint U.S.-Iraqi military checkpoint south of Fallujah, killing at least one Iraqi soldier and four civilians, police said.

Authorities said they found three bodies -- two in Baghdad and one in Iskandiriyah, 30 miles to the south.

Gunmen killed four people and wounded three in three separate shootings in Baghdad.

Two Sunnis were killed in the mostly Shiite southern city of Basra, police said.

U.S. and Iraqi troops killed an insurgent and captured nine in a raid in Youssifiyah, south of Baghdad, the U.S. command said.

Associated Press writers Nadia Abou El-Magd in Cairo and Qassim Abdul-Zahra, Sameer N. Yacoub and Bushra Juhi in Baghdad contributed to this report.

By Robert H. Reid, Associated Press Writer

I have seen this video and understand why the military is saying it is fake. Blurry doesn't even begin to describe how unclear the video is. Nothing is really identifiable. Even the "body" being dragged isn't indentifiable as a person. Unfirtunately I think this video may be real but the idiots haven't figured out that we aren't believing shit we can't actually see. Plus I have dealt with the military firsthand in the casualty deparment (husand was a line of duty death 2004) and know that they to avoid answering as many questions as possible and leave the families left to wonder for eternity what REALLY happened. Basically even if the military thought it was real they would straight up lie to the families and discredit it so that they wouldn't have to answer the questions of where was the other bird flying with them at the time they were taking our mens bodies out of their helo or what took them so long to get in and recover what they could? At all expense the military will cover their own asses first even if it means keeping the truth from the people in the states most effected. So they go on to their next mission and still the widow and children live questioning it everyday. The whole Army CAO thing needs an overhaul. Families aren't findng out the truths and the process is taking too long. It can't take months to get a soldiers laptop home and when it does get back it is completely BLANK. No pictures to look at to see what kept your soldier going while he was gone, no saved emails or journaling. Everything is wiped out. What's the point of sending personal effects home when they take the PERSONAL out of the them?
My peace is that even though the video is the worst I've ever seen (literally as far as bluriness) these brave men had left their bodies befre the extremists gt close and were securing their places in the pockets of their families hearts.