Posted on 06/01/2007 8:49:32 PM PDT by bnelson44
Baghdad – They were still bringing in the wounded when we arrived at the mosque in southern Amiriya Thursday morning, racing from the armored vehicles surrounded by bursts of gunfire.
An American soldier was among the casualties – killed by small arms fire. His name is being withheld. His commanders said he was an exceptional young man who re-enlisted after surviving a mortar attack that killed his roommate.
The Iraqi wounded were taken to the mosque – laid out on the teal blue carpet stained by pools of blood and littered with shards of glass from the shattered ceiling panels which had read “There is no God but God...’
One of them was Saif Mohammad Fakhry, an Iraqi cameraman with the television news agency APTN. His brother said he had gone out in the street with a gun after suspected al-Qaeda militants attacked the neighborhood.
(Excerpt) Read more at iraqslogger.com ...
Lots of details from an imbed
Ping.
Freedom ain't free.
“I told him to stay inside – that the fighting was none of our business,” he told me, still sobbing. “He was a peaceful man but he said: ‘They are killing us every day – we live like this with no electricity, with no water and they are killing us.”
Saif had gone into the street carrying the rifle that each family in Baghdad is allowed to own. The U.S. military normally considers guns on the streets justification to shoot on sight but in Amiriya that rule was relaxed as neighborhood men spurred on by religious leaders gathered to fight al-Qaeda.
I have the feeling that US, Baathist, and tribal leaders had this one planned out and it isn’t as spontaneous as one might think.
I see no evidence of that. In fact, the US forces were called in later.
I doubt the Baathists would even want us in the fight at least early on. They would want locals to feel that they are opposing Sunnis for their own reasons not because America wants them to. After it gets started of course US help is fine.
We have been talking along with the Anbar Salvation Council for months with the 1920 Revolution and the Islamic State in Iraq about going after al-Qaeda. And, Odierno in his press conference seemed to be hinting strongly we were making strong inroads in those areas.
I meant to say opposing Sunni al-Qaeda for their own reasons.
See http://iraqthemodel.blogspot.com/ for his report.
Yes, that was written on Thursday. The battle was Thursday and Friday. The report I posted here was submitted on Sat. Baghdad time.
we can only hope it is the beginning of something good happening in Baghdad
There has been lots happening good in Baghdad.
ping
Quite possible
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