Iraq beatings caught on video
Sunday, February 12, 2006
Amateur video released Sunday by a London-based newspaper shows eight British soldiers dragging what appear to be three Iraqi youths behind a wall, where they apparently kick and hit them with batons and fists.
The News of the World said the soldiers' attack, which followed a scene showing youths throwing stones at the soldiers, was videotaped in southern Iraq in early 2004. The newspaper said the scenes, which lasted about two minutes, were videotaped by a corporal "for fun," apparently from a nearby rooftop.
On the tape, the youths' pleas for mercy are ignored. The beatings include what appears to be a British soldier kicking one of the youths, shown pinned to the ground by other soldiers, in the genitals. In another case, a soldier puts a boy in a headlock, then releases him only to butt his head against the boy's, then strike his fist on the boy's head.
The youth's cries can be heard on the tape.
The tape includes what sounds like a running commentary of approval from the cameraman. "Oh yes! Oh yes! You're gonna get it. Yes, naughty little boys!" the narrator can be heard saying as the blows land. "Die! Ha, ha!"
...The paper quoted an informant as saying, "These Iraqis were just kids. Most haven't even got shoes on.
edition.cnn.com |
