Middle East News

[mewpadmin]

Civilian deaths complicate talks on keeping U.S. troops in Iraq

For the second time in a week, a joint Iraqi-American raid aiming at insurgents resulted in the killing of civilians.

Witnesses in the village of Ishaqi, just south of Tikrit, said Iraqi and American forces opened fire on civilians and threw hand grenades early Friday as they conducted a raid. The villagers say a 13-year-old boy and an off-duty police officer were killed.

U.S. military officials acknowledged that there was an operation in Ishaqi but offered few details.

"This was an Iraqi-planned and -led counterterrorism operation," said Maj. Gen. Jeffrey Buchanan, a U.S. military spokesman. "The operation was enabled by U.S. support that included helicopters. Also, there was a small number of U.S. advisers taking part in the operation, although it was predominantly Iraqi forces and they were in charge of all activities on the ground."

A spokesman for the Iraqi special forces declined to comment.

A local official and two witnesses said that firing started when a villager shot at the raiding forces because he believed they were thieves. The forces fired back and threw grenades, the witnesses said, wounding him and killing his 13-year-old son.

read more: http://www.statesman.com/news/world/civ ... 05087.html