'Injured Iraqi shot in cold blood'
http://www.capetimes.co.za/index.php?fSectionId=272&fArticleId=2302428
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Just imagine, if these kinds of horrendous crimes against humanity are being committed against Iraqi civilians in front of embedded reporters, what would be the scale of barbarous acts being committed by US and coalition troops when the cameras are not in sight.
the new item has also been added in the comments section for reference.
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'Injured Iraqi shot in cold blood'
US probes suspected war crime
November 17, 2004
By Maher al-Thanoon
Fallujah: Controversy over the US-led offensive against this city has been fuelled by video footage showing an American Marine shooting a wounded and unarmed Iraqi in a mosque here.
The US military says it is investigating the killing.
"This investigation is to determine whether the Marine acted in self-defence, violated military law or, failed to comply with the law of armed conflict," the 1st Marine Division said.
The Iraqi was one of five wounded men left in the mosque after Marines fought their way through the area on Friday and Saturday.
A pool report by NBC correspondent Kevin Sites said the mosque had been used by insurgents as a base for attacks on American forces.
American forces stormed it, killing 10 militants and wounding the five.
A second group of Marines entered the mosque on Saturday after hearing reports that it had been reoccupied.
Once inside the mosque, Sites said he saw five injured Iraqi prisoners who had been left behind on Friday. Four of them had been shot again. He said one appeared dead and another severely wounded.
A fifth man, said Sites, was lying under a blanket propped against a wall. He did not appear to be armed.
One of the Marines noticed the man was breathing, Sites said. The Marine was then heard to say: "He's f...ing faking he's dead. He's faking he's f...ing dead."
Sites saw the Marine raise his rifle and fire point-blank at the man's head.
"Well, he's dead now," another Marine shouted.
The reporter said the Marine who shot the Iraqi claimed later that he did not know the man was unarmed.
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Amnesty International said on Monday both sides in the fighting here had breached the rules of war protecting civilians and wounded combatants.
"All violations of international humanitarian law and human rights law must be investigated and those responsible for breaches ... must be brought to justice, be they members of the multinational force or insurgents," said Louise Arbour, the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights.
The International Committee of the Red Cross, mandated to uphold the Geneva Conventions on warfare, had no comment yet, a spokeswoman said.
American and Iraqi forces launched an offensive yesterday to regain control of rebel-held areas in Iraq's third-largest city, Mosul, after a week of anarchy and insurgents rampaging through the streets.
American and Iraqi forces encountered little rebel resistance in the early stages of the Mosul operation, but said a curfew from 4pm to 6am would remain in place and the city's five bridges over the Tigris were closed.
# The US military has charged an army officer with premeditated murder for his part in the fatal shooting of an injured Iraqi man in Baghdad's Sadr City slum in August.
The officer has been charged with premeditated murder and conspiracy to commit premeditated murder. If convicted, he could face the death penalty.
Military investigators had looked into whether he authorised two subordinates to shoot a young Iraqi man who was grievously wounded and unlikely to survive.
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