Letters Home
Soldiers’s Glowing Accounts of Success in Iraq Success Were Written by Commander
By Martha Raddatz
ABCNEWS.com
Oct. 13 — The letters appeared in roughly 12 newspapers across the country. From Massachusetts to
California, and many places in between, family members and local newspapers received letters from
soldiers of the 2nd Battalion of the 503rd Infantry Regiment detailing their successes in northern Iraq.
Each letter was signed by a different soldier, but the words were identical:
"Kirkuk is a hot and dusty city of just over a million people. The majority of the city has welcomed our
presence with open arms. After nearly five months here, the people still come running from their
homes, into the 110-degree heat, waving to us as our troops drive by on daily patrols of the city.
Children smile and run up to shake hands and in their broken English shouting, "Thank you, Mister."
Amy Connell, of Sharon, Mass., knew as soon as she received the letter from her son Adam that he
did not write it. "He's 20 years old and I don't think his language or his writing ability would have
entailed that kind of description," she said.
She was right. Her son didn't write the letter. In an e-mail to ABCNEWS today, the commander of the
battalion, Lt. Col. Dominic Caraccilo, said the "letter-writing initiative" was all his idea.
Caraccilo said he circulated the form letter to his soldiers to give them "an opportunity to let their
respective hometowns know what they are accomplishing here in Kirkuk. As you might expect, they
are working at an extremely fast pace and getting the good news back home is not always easy. We
thought it would be a good idea to encapsulate what we as a battalion have accomplished since
arriving Iraq and share that pride with people back home."
Caraccilo wrote that his staff drafted the letter, he edited it and reviewed it and then offered it to the
soldiers. "Every soldier who signed that letter did so after a careful read," he said. "Some, who could
find the time, decided to send their own versions, while others chose not to take part in the initiative."
Caraccilo was unapologetic, saying that the letter "perfectly reflects what each of these brave soldiers
has and continues to accomplish on the ground."
"With the current and ongoing media focus on casualties and terrorist attacks, we thought it equally
important to share with the American public, and especially the folks from our soldier's hometowns, the
good news associated with our work in Kirkuk," Caraccilo added.
Kirkuk Less Violent Than Other Iraqi Cities
Indeed, Kirkuk has seen improvement over the past several months, and is far less violent than other
areas of Iraq.
Amy Connell had no problem sending the letter to her local paper, The Boston Globe, even though she
knew her son hadn't written it.
"I thought the letter was a good representation of what they are doing over there in Kirkuk," she said. "It
just showed the positive aspect that is coming out of the war, and what they, our soldiers, are doing
over there for the Iraqi people."
But The Boston Globe wasn't happy to learn about the origin of the letter. An editor at the Globe told
ABCNEWS that it was "a big disappointment."
"Our readers have a right to expect letters that are originals," he said.
abcnews.go.com
--------------------
IRAQ LETTERS OF MASS DECEPTION Oct 14 2003
Identical messages `signed' by different soldiers
From Anthony Harwood Us Editor In New York
LETTERS said to have been written by US soldiers praising America's work in Iraq have been
exposed as a huge publicity stunt.
Dozens of letters were sent to newspapers across the US but now it has emerged that the soldiers
were given the wording and many did not sign them.
The notes told how the military had successful rebuilt water and sewage plants in the northern city of
Kirkuk.
And they claimed that local people were cheering American troops and rushing up to shake their
hands.
The deception came as latest opinion polls showed support for the war plummeting across the US.
The letters were all identical and sent in the name of members of the 503rd Airborne Division.
But the first that Private Nick Deaconson knew about the letter was when he phoned home and his
father Timothy congratulated him on getting it published in the paper in Beckley, West Virginia.
Timothy, who is a doctor, said: "When I told him he wrote such a good letter, he said `What letter?' "
It describes the regiment's mission to Iraq and goes on: "The fruits of all our soldiers' efforts are clearly
visible in the streets of Kirkuk today. There is very little trash in the streets, many more people in the
markets and shops, and children have returned to school.
"I am proud of the work we are doing here in Iraq and I hope all of your readers are as well.
"The quality of life and security for the citizens has been largely restored, and we are a large part of
why that has happened."
Timothy added: "It seems to me this is a well-intended gesture" but that "if the average person found
that Nick didn't write the letter, it might take a little something away from it."
Sergeant Christopher Shelton said his platoon sergeant handed out copies of the letter and asked
soldiers to sign it if they agreed with what it said.
Shelton, who did sign the letter which appeared in the Snohomish Herald, said: "Everything it said is
dead accurate. We've done a really good job." But Sergeant Shawn Grueser said he did not sign the
letter that ended up in his local paper in Charleston, West Virginia.
"It makes it look like you cheated on a test," he said.
Sergeant Todd Oliver, a spokesman for the 503rd Airborne, said he had been told a soldier had
written the letters. "When he asked other soldiers in his unit to sign it, they did.
"Someone took it upon themselves to mail it to various newspapers across the country."
The Pentagon last night promised an investigation.
CC |
