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Politics : GOPwinger Lies/Distortions/Omissions/Perversions of Truth -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Kevin Rose who wrote (38897)	3/6/2005 7:31:16 PM
From: geode00	Respond to of 173976

No One Safe on Baghdad's Roads, Iraqis Say Sat Mar 5, 1:55 PM ET yahoo.com By Elizabeth Piper BAGHDAD (Reuters) - Jawdat Abd al-Kadhum was not surprised that U.S. troops opened fire at a car carrying a freed Italian hostage to safety. He lost a leg to an American bullet fired from a convoy traveling ahead of him. The 23-year-old says fear, confusion and misunderstandings on all sides have made roads in Iraq (news - web sites)'s capital perilous. Now he says he makes sure that any car he is in stops when a U.S. military convoy transporting soldiers or equipment nears. "There is no safety on the roads. Everyone should expect anything to happen on these roads. Foreigners, Iraqis we are all exposed to the same risks," said al-Kadhum, his left tracksuit trouser leg tied around the stump of his leg. "Now if I see an American convoy, I stop until it has gone." Many have a tale to tell of someone they know that has been shot at, killed or harassed by U.S. forces in convoys or at checkpoints dotted across the country. Security contractors, whose numbers have risen as relentless and often indiscriminate violence grips Iraq, are accused of being trigger-happy. But the killing of secret service agent Nicola Calipari, who was instrumental in gaining Italian journalist Giuliana Sgrena's release from kidnappers, has underlined what was already known to many -- U.S. checkpoints or convoys should be avoided. STAY CLEAR The U.S. military says it cannot discuss the rules of engagement -- procedure for dealing with threats from suicide bombers or car bombs -- due to "operational security issues." But ex-army officers say cars should be at least 50 meters away from any convoy, never overtake and that if a car speeds toward a checkpoint soldiers will shoot at the engine block to make sure the vehicle comes to a standstill. They say unnecessary shootings happen when hand signals -- a fist to stay back -- or linguistic misunderstandings take place. Cultural differences can also prompt panic -- driving slowly for an Iraqi is not necessarily the same as for an American. Al-Kadhum thought he knew the rules. He was taking his uncle, who suffers from kidney disease, to hospital just miles away from their home in al-Ghazaliyah in west Baghdad. He says they were a safe distance from the convoy. "I cannot remember the exact distance, but we were first behind the convoy about 500 meters behind," he says. "But then there was an explosion on the convoy and they started shooting. Shooting everywhere." His car was shot. A bullet went through his knee. He tried to press the hole to stop the bleeding but then lost consciousness. In hospital, his leg was amputated just above the knee. "I believe the Americans were confused when they attacked us. But this confusion causes tragedies," he says, complaining that he cannot find work and has been told he cannot claim compensation before the formation of Iraq's new government. "But yes I blame them. We were not guilty. What have I done to deserve losing my leg?" ============ Wolfowitz: Iraq war will cost $1.7 billion and take 1.5 weeks. Why is Wolfowitz still in his job? Bush simply loves the thoroughly compromised, corrupt and incompetent.