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Mohammed Saeed Al-Sahaf ('Baghdad Bob') THEN ...Al-Sahaf’s daily press briefings in the lead-up to the war and in its first weeks led to him being nicknamed Baghdad Bob or Comical Ali (an allusion to “Chemical Ali,” the nickname of former Iraqi defense minister Ali Hassan al-Majid.) He gained a considerable cult following, with several Web sites devoted to his outrageous claims...as coalition troops stormed the capital, al-Sahaf declared, "The infidels are committing suicide by the hundreds on the gates of Baghdad."... NOW On 25 June 2003, the London newspaper The Daily Mirror reported that al-Sahaf had been captured by coalition...

The American mass media are like tired old dogs, dutifully fetching official lies on command and dropping them like bones at the feet of an unsuspecting public. We in turn reward them by buying both the products and the myths they sell us. Eventually, however, the products fail and the myths unravel. When the government's popularity wanes sufficiently, despite the support of a compliant press, even old dogs can come up with new tricks, reviving the lost art of investigative reporting. Take the Pat Tillman story. Remember him? He was the star National Football League defensive back who, after the...

Former prisoner of war Jessica Lynch, whose capture and rescue in the early days of the Iraq war turned her into a US icon, said in an interview that the US government had used her as an upbeat symbol in the conflict. "I think I provided a way to boost everybody's confidence about the war," Lynch told Time magazine. "I was used as a symbol. They could show the war was going great because 'we rescued this person.' It doesn't bother me anymore. It used to," she said.

MORGANTOWN, W.Va. (AP) Former prisoner of war Jessica Lynch says she is a bit nervous about starting college this fall, but she doesn't want any special attention. ``I have to say I am a little nervous the freshmen that I'll be with were eighth-graders when I graduated from high school,'' Lynch told Time magazine in an interview for the Aug. 15 issue. The 22-year-old former Army supply clerk, who now walks with a cane because of her Iraq war injuries, said she wants to blend in as much as possible at West Virginia University in Morgantown. ``It was hard getting...

MORGANTOWN, W.Va. - Jessica Lynch will begin on-campus classes this fall at West Virginia University, the school said Monday. The former prisoner of war announced in March that she was beginning online courses at WVU and that she hoped to become an elementary school teacher. "WVU is very pleased to be able to assist her in that pursuit," school spokeswoman Becky Lofstead said Monday, "and proud to call Jessica Lynch a Mountaineer." Lynch, a native of Palestine, W.Va., is enrolled in the College of Human Resources and Education. Former Gov. Bob Wise promised Lynch that the state would pay for...

BAGHDAD, Iraq - A female soldier in the Army's 320th Military Police Battalion took "vigilante justice" on Iraqi prisoners who she believed had raped Army Pfc. Jessica Lynch, according to a letter from the battalion's commander obtained by The Associated Press. Lt. Col. Jerry L. Phillabaum, commander of 320th Military Police Battalion, leveled the allegation in a rebuttal to charges against his leadership of the 320th, some of whose soldiers were also charged with abusing prisoners last fall at Baghdad's Abu Ghraib prison. Phillabaum made the allegation in an April 12 memo to Lt. Gen. Thomas Metz, deputy commander of...

BAGHDAD, Iraq - A female soldier in the Army’s 320th Military Police Battalion took “vigilante justice” on Iraqi prisoners who she believed had raped Army Pfc. Jessica Lynch, according to a letter from the battalion’s commander obtained by The Associated Press. advertisement Lt. Col. Jerry L. Phillabaum, commander of the 320th Military Police Battalion, leveled the allegation in a rebuttal to charges against his leadership of the 320th, some of whose soldiers were also charged with abusing prisoners last fall at Baghdad’s Abu Ghraib prison.

June 18, 2004 -- Pvt. Jessica Lynch — the POW who won over the nation with her gutsy spirit — had a heartwarming meeting with President Bush yesterday. Using a metal cane to help her walk, Jessica hobbled into the Oval Office to shake hands and chat with the commander-in-chief. The two shared a few laughs along with Jessica's friend Alyssa Gregg, who came along. They also talked about the charitable foundation Lynch set up to help kids separated from their parents during military deployments.

NEW ORLEANS, Louisiana, 5 June 2004 — News reports suggest US troops will deploy to Saudi Arabia to “save” Saudi oil fields from “Al-Qaeda” attacks. And because “Al-Qaeda” militants killed an American there last Saturday. Others died, too. Arabs, Indians, Italians, Filipinos, South Africans, Sri Lankans, Swedes, Egyptians, British.... But don’t forget that American. His presence in Saudi Arabia makes whatever happened there an attack on America, on democracy, on goodness, on...freedom. And so we don’t forget. We can’t. We have news. America’s news is so self-obsessed that if nuclear holocaust struck the Middle East today, America’s headlines would proclaim:...

Ex-POW wanted private meeting with Iraqi lawyerFormer POW Jessica Lynch has met the Iraqi lawyer who helped lead American soldiers to the Army supply clerk after her capture last spring. The meeting with Mohammed Odeh al-Rehaief took place earlier this month in Washington, D.C., where Lynch was speaking at a seminar. "It was a wonderful meeting and I can never control my emotion," said al-Rehaief, who is in Huntington for a Saturday book signing. Al-Rehaief said Lynch was grateful for his part in her rescue. "She tell me ‘thank you,' and she say ‘thank you very much for what you...

<p>March 11, 2004 -- Former Army POW Jessica Lynch has reportedly "postponed indefinitely" her wedding to her sergeant fiancé.</p> <p>Lynch, 20, is still wearing her wedding ring but put off the nuptials with Sgt. Ruben Contreras, People magazine says in next week's issue.</p>

One tiny girl, a whole lot of awe Jessica Lynch charms room full of WVU journalism students Bob Gay/The Dominion Post Photos Jessica Lynch, seated beside WVU journalism professor George Esper, laughes at a question about basic training during a surprise visit. Lynch was a guest speaker for the school Tuesday night. Jessica Lynch (right) is escorted into White Hall by WVU journalism professor George Esper, just before speaking to students. Lynch (far right) smiles at a comment about her mother's T-shirt that said, "My daughter wears combat boots." BY JAKE STUMP The Dominion Post At just 105 pounds and...

<p>Jessica Lynch has become a motivational speaker.</p> <p>The slight blonde who went from broken prisoner of war and national hero to an instant and controversial celebrity has taken on a new public identity, offering her story in a presentation titled "Survival is a Choice."</p>

A new development in the story of former POW Pfc. Jessica Lynch should give pause to anyone who promotes the assignment of female soldiers in or near direct ground combat units. In the fall of 2003 American doctors who examined Army Pfc. Jessica Lynch after her rescue from Iraq confirmed that she had been brutally sodomized by Iraqi thugs. The abuse reportedly occurred shortly after the violent ambush of the 507th Maintenance Unit on March 23, 2003, during a three to four hour period when Lynch was unconscious. (See “Jessica Lynch Reality Shatters Amazon Myths”) On March 23, 2003, Al...

After forcing myself to read Jessica Lynch's book I've come to the conclusion that this country needs to have a talk -- an honest, no holds barred, to-heck-with-brain-numbing-political correctness, talk with itself. Do women belong in combat situations or not? Are we going to engage in an emotional orgy every time a woman soldier gets captured or not? Is a female soldier's life more precious than a man's or not? Jessica Lynch seems like a nice enough girl and she has suffered horribly but she's not a heroine as she herself has stated. She was thrown into a hideous situation...

PHOENIX - The family of a soldier killed in Iraq (news - web sites) had harsh words Wednesday for the network that aired footage of her, bloody and bruised, in an Iraqi hospital bed shortly before she died. AP Photo   The footage, aired Tuesday on "NBC Nightly News," shows Lori Piestewa and Jessica Lynch — Army privates and best friends — at a hospital where they were taken after a March 23 ambush. Lynch was rescued April 1. Airing the tape — which NBC said was filmed but never broadcast by Iraqi television — created a sense of fear,...

NEW YORK - Graphic video footage of a badly injured Jessica Lynch and Lori Piestewa, who may have died shortly afterward, was taken by Iraqi state television following the ambush of the soldiers' Army convoy, NBC reported Tuesday night. The video, aired on "NBC Nightly News," shows the two Army privates at the hospital where they were taken following the March 23 ambush of the 507th Maintenance Co. The tape was never aired in Iraq, NBC reported. Piestewa, her face swollen and bruised and her head loosely bandaged, is shown as someone positions her feet, and then her head, for...

Jessica Lynch Foundation December 22, 2003 Doles Out $5,000 to Former P.O.W's Alma Mater Jessica Lynch went back to school over the weekend all in part to make the future brighter for her fellow Wirt Countians. The former P.O.W. was on hand at Wirt County High School Saturday to sign copies of her book, "I'm A Soldier, Too: The Jessica Lynch Story." Charitable actions were also on Lynch's agenda as she prsented Wirt County High School Principal Ken Heiney with a check for $5,000 to be used for scholarships. Fans waited in line for nearly 2 hours to get...

A Marine captain who helped rescue Private Jessica Lynch was awarded the Bronze Star for valor yesterday at Camp Lejeune, N.C. Capt. Thomas (Tad) Douglas, 27, identified the hospital where Lynch was held, gathered information to assist her Special Forces rescue and set up snipers to protect the effort, officials said. Douglas also caught two of Saddam Hussein's Baath Party members suspected of killing civilians two days after the rescue. Though Lynch and Iraqi hospital workers have said early reports of the dangers involved in the raid were exaggerated, Douglas and other Marines said they were shot at outside Saddam...

Dec 1, 2003 Jessica Lynch to Christen Cruise Ship The Associated Press MIAMI (AP) - Former Army Pfc. Jessica Lynch is to christen Carnival Cruise Lines' newest ship at Feb. 27 ceremonies in Jacksonville, the Miami-based line announced Monday. Lynch will break a traditional bottle of champagne against the Carnival Miracle immediately preceding its three-day inaugural cruise from the Port of Jacksonville. She will be named the ship's "godmother." "We are privileged that Miss Lynch, who represents thousands of courageous American men and women serving in our armed forces, has accepted our invitation to be godmother," said Carnival President and...