June 08, 2006
Veracity of Haditha Witnesses is Questionable
I'm starting to understand why the Naval Criminal Investigative Service has been working so long to develop physical evidence and forensics to base their Haditha investigation on.
Dan Riehl notes in comparisons of "witness" interviews in various media outlets that few if any of the Haditha witnesses are credible. One of the witnesses even admits to knowing that an IED blast was imminent.
This information would in no way make it acceptable for U.S. Marines to shoot civilians (in Haditha or anywhere else) without just cause, but it does make this incident far more complex than many initially thought.
This is one reason why I have been saying and writing that we should reserve judgment concerning the Haditha story until the investigation comes in. That should not be too much to ask given how the Marines put their lives on the line for our country, taking on nasty and dangerous tasks in insurgency hotbeds.
I recommend for reading: (i) Andrew Waldron's article "Haditha: Reason for Doubt" that was published June 6, 2006 on FrontPageMagazine.com; (ii) On Line Wall Street Journal writer James Taratino's publication of an e-mail from a U.S. military officer in Iraq concerning the media manipulation by insurgents, posted with the caption "Soldier in Iraq Says the Press is a 'Puppet for the Insurgents'," June 7, 2006 on NewsBusters (newsbusters.org); and (iii) Michelle Malkin's exposure of the London Times for publication of a photograph of dead Iraqis in Haditha in connection with the alleged Marine massacre when in fact the photograph was of dead Iraqis at the Haditha stadium who actually had been exected by insurgents (the London Times has apologized for its "error").
Posted by: Phil Byler at June 8, 2006 10:15 AMIf this event is proven to be false, Congressman Murtha should be sued by the marines involved, by the families of the marines and the Department of Defense!!
Posted by: Dave Zimmerman at June 11, 2006 12:10 PM
