Reporter Provides Account of Mosul Attack

[Terri]

Reporter Provides Account of Mosul Attack

By JEREMY REDMON
Richmond Times-Dispatch
Newsday

FORWARD OPERATING BASE MAREZ, Iraq -- It was a brilliant, sunny day with blue skies and warmer than usual weather in the northern Iraqi city of Mosul. Hundreds of U.S. soldiers had just sat down for lunch in their giant chow hall tent.

It was about noon Tuesday when insurgents hit their tent with a suspected rocket attack. The force of the explosions knocked soldiers off their feet and out of their seats. A fireball enveloped the top of the tent, and shrapnel sprayed into the men.

Amid the screaming and thick smoke that followed, quick-thinking soldiers turned their lunch tables upside down, placed the wounded on them and gently carried them into the parking lot.

More (http://www.newsday.com/news/nationworld/wire/sns-ap-iraq-attack-scene,0,3660132.stor y?coll=sns-ap-nationworld-headlines)

[McMahon]

As the article states, they almost made it without casualties. Sure, it is quite sad for all the victims, their families and all who have relatives at this base.

I am quite sure our troops have been quite well protected as there could have been manay more victims.

On a side note, if I was an embedded journalist, i would think twice before reporting about any alleged mistreatment of wounded enemy combatants.

[Original Rebel]

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Quote[/b] ]On a side note, if I was an embedded journalist, i would think twice before reporting about any alleged mistreatment of wounded enemy combatants.
You got that right, McMahon.

However, on BOR tonight, some uptight little military twit with a long title in front of his name and a set of pursy lips, told Bill that they WERE going to court martial the young marine that killed the miserable carcass of a wounded terrorist in the mosque. The one a few weeks back that the "embedded" reporter was with and whom I wish had gotten his rotten butt shot off along with his big mouth. Somebody should have shoved his camera where the sun don't shine.

This just blisters me. I don't see how the military can assert any right to crucify this young soldier after he'd been through what he'd just been through...and not give him the benefit of the doubt. Just head-shakin' disgusting.

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[Basheva]

Quote[/b] ]Insurgents have fired mortars at the chow hall more than 30 times this year.

Ok - I am going to be the grinch here......

Why were they still using this chow hall after it had been shot at 30 times? Why was there not dispersal for meal times? Why no bunkers?

If the chow hall had been shot at "more than 30 times this year" - does it not stand to reason that sooner or later it's going to be hit?

What am I missing here?

[feniangirl]

I have to ask, but doesn't this attack violate some part of the all holy Geneva Convention? Surely these terrorists will be held accountable for such violations? I'm sure Al Zarqawi will court martial (or perhaps behead) these nasty little buggers he commands for commiting such a breach. Don't you think? http://www.gopusa.com/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/shake.gif
And all the imbeded reporters and rational nations of the world will be calling for him to do so, won't they? http://www.gopusa.com/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/tqrolleyes.gif

Time to quit screwing around folks. A strategically placed nuke here and there will show them all that we are tired of playing games. http://www.gopusa.com/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/teeth2.gif Let everyone else piss and moan about it. Who cares, they piss and moan about anything the US does anyway - might as well make it worth their effort. http://www.gopusa.com/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/mad.gif We need to stop http://www.gopusa.com/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/tombstone1.gif the deaths of American and allied troops in any way possible. http://www.gopusa.com/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/biggun.gif

[Froufrou]

OR said -
[They will] court martial the young marine that killed the miserable carcass of a wounded terrorist in the mosque. The one a few weeks back that the "embedded" reporter was with and whom I wish had gotten his rotten butt shot off along with his big mouth. Somebody should have shoved his camera where the sun don't shine.

We ought to send something out to stop this, if we can.

[Terri]

Quote[/b] ]Why no bunkers?

A hardened bunker was under construction according to other reports I have read.

From this article:

Quote[/b] ]Workers are building a new steel and concrete chow hall for the soldiers just down the dusty dirt road.

[Basheva]

Yes, I saw that Terri.

But, it seems to me, layman though I am, that after having rockets fired over 30 times in one year at the messhall, they should have either dispersed the troops for mealtimes (as inconvenient as that might be), or put up a fortified messhall a lot sooner.

I wish, I wish.

[Terri]

Yes, I can understand that it's easy to think that from here but we really don't know the situation they are coping with. There must be many, many dining halls in tents.

I rely on my faith that they are doing all that they can as quickly as possible to protect the soldiers and to put down the terrorists.

[bcdaley]

Basheva said:
Quote[/b] ]But, it seems to me, layman though I am, that after having rockets fired over 30 times in one year at the messhall, they should have either dispersed the troops for mealtimes (as inconvenient as that might be), or put up a fortified messhall a lot sooner.


Ted Koppel talked about this on Nightline last night with a retired general. I knew what Koppels' angle was going to be before he even opened his mouth. This is a paraphrase, but it's not far from what Koppel actually said. He basically said that the new mess hall would have already been completed and in use if they were able to protect the Iraqi construction workers from the terrorists. In other words it's America's fault for not being able to provide adequate security. I think he threw the standard "there aren't enough troops" in there as well.
Of course if we were able to provide security to the point that there was no threat to the workers there wouldn't be much need for a hardened mess hall would there? To his credit the general didn't take the bait. He replied there are always going to be vulnerabilities and they're constantly working to improve security whether that means armoring humvees or fortifying bases.

[Corgie Girl]

News this morning is hinting that this was a planted or suicide bomb, rather than a mortar. From experts that were interviewed, the terrorists are so inaccurate with their launches that they usually can't hit the broad side of a barn. Than it why the bases were so blase about them. If it was launched, it was a lucky (or in actuality un-lucky) turn of fate that it actually hit something.

Of course the leftist press is using this as just one more pulpit to extoll that this is an unjust war, we need to pull out, we need to send in more troops and the Rummy must go. Their attitude sure is giving fuel to these nutjobs that are trying to influence public opinion at home. Amazingly, they still don't get it - we're in a war for our very cultural existance. Either we deal with it in the MIddle East or we will be dealing with it here.

[Original Rebel]

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Froufrou said:
Quote[/b] ]We ought to send something out to stop this, if we can.

I feel the same way, but our guy (Ghostwalker) who knows how to go about this stuff hasn't been posting lately. Wonder where he is.

How could we go about this? I don't think a letter to our "congressman" would do any good...and who could we storm at the Pentagon? Any ideas? Anyone?

Ol hotshot BOR said - back when - that if "they" tried to CM this soldier that HE would stand up for him. Michael Savage also said the same thing. I wonder where they are now!

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[Basheva]

Quote[/b] ]I wonder where they are now!


Everybody is off celebrating the vernal equinox.

[Charie]

Ar Lady a th Dance, yer not oney crool; yer downrite sinical.

[Basheva]

Quote[/b] ]Ar Lady a th Dance, yer not oney crool; yer downrite sinical.



Charie - May I ask? I note that you had to edit that post up there - so what did you correct - your spelling?


HA HAHA HAHAHAHAHA