Home > BASRA : British forces stormed the jail using six tanks and free two (…)

BASRA : British forces stormed the jail using six tanks and free two soldiers held in Iraq prison

by Open-Publishing - Tuesday 20 September 2005
36 comments

Edito Wars and conflicts International UK

A British soldier jumps from a burning tank which was set ablaze

By Alaa Habib

BASRA, Iraq - British forces freed two undercover soldiers from jail in Basra late on Monday after a day of rioting in the southern city sparked when the soldiers fired on an Iraqi police patrol.

An Iraqi Interior Ministry official said British forces stormed the jail using six tanks and that dozens of Iraqi prisoners escaped during the raid. But the Ministry of Defence said the release of the two soldiers was negotiated and it did not believe the prison had been stormed.

"We’ve heard nothing to suggest we stormed the prison," a ministry spokesman said in London. "We understand there were negotiations."

Lisa Glover, spokeswoman for the British embassy in Baghdad, said three people were wounded in the operation to free the soldiers and were being treated at a nearby base. She did not give further details of how the soldiers were freed.

The events in the mainly Shi’ite city are likely to worsen relations between British forces responsible for security in southern Iraq and the local population.

The two undercover soldiers were arrested on Monday after opening fire on Iraqi police who approached them, police and local officials said. They said the men were wearing traditional Arab headscarves and sitting in an unmarked car.

"They were driving a civilian car and were dressed in civilian clothes when shooting took place between them and Iraqi patrols," an official in Basra said.

Mohammed al-Abadi, an official in the Basra governorate, said the two men looked suspicious to police.

"A policeman approached them and then one of these guys fired at him. Then the police managed to capture them," Abadi told reporters. "They refused to say what their mission was. They said they were British soldiers and (suggested) to ask their commander about their mission."

One of the British undercover soldiers sat with a bandage on his head after being detained, a Reuters photographer said. His trousers were stained with blood spots.

TANK ABLAZE

Furious crowds pelted British armoured vehicles with rocks and petrol bombs after the shooting incident. Tensions in Basra had already been stoked on Sunday when British forces arrested two leading members of the Mehdi army, a nationalist militia led by radical Shi’ite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr.

A British soldier was engulfed in flames as he scrambled out of a burning tank during the rioting, under a hail of stones hurled by the crowd. The tank tried to reverse away from trouble after it was attacked by Iraqis flinging petrol bombs, burning furniture and tyres.

Iraqis had driven through the streets with loudhailers demanding that the undercover Britons remain in jail.

Basra, capital of the Shi’ite south, has been relatively stable compared with central Iraq, where Sunni Arab insurgents have killed thousands of Iraqi and U.S. troops, officials and civilians with suicide attacks, roadside bombs and shootings.

But relations remain tense between the British military and some local groups — particularly Sadr’s militia which launched two bloody uprisings against foreign forces in 2004.

British Defence Secretary John Reid confirmed in a statement that the two undercover soldiers were back with British forces, but shed no light on their mission or how they were released.

"The situation in Basra is currently calmer after a day of disturbances. At this stage it is not possible to be certain why these disturbances began," he said, adding that some British soldiers were lightly wounded during the rioting but would soon return to duty.

The main ally of the United States, Britain said on Sunday it would if necessary increase the number of troops in Iraq, where it has about 8,500 soldiers.

(Additional reporting by Mariam Karouny and Luke Baker in Baghdad and Peter Griffiths in London) (Reuters)

http://today.reuters.co.uk/news/new...

Forum posts

  • Soldiers in civilian clothing are called spies and are executed in most countries (including civilized countries) … how many American and British spies are creating havoc in Iraq and executing innocent people while pretending to be Arabs?

    I guess it is true what the US says … there are foreign soldiers fighting and terrorizing Iraqi’s … it’s just that it wasn’t made clear that they are British and Americans (plus Israeli’s of course)

    • You are very naive indeed if you think that the occupation of Iraq has not involved both US and UK personnel operating undercover. There is no evidence they are terrorists, but there is plenty of evidence that the police in Basra have been completely infiltrated by Al Sadr’s militia. And what a repulsive lot they are. In fact, some have been criticizing our troops there for being too easy on them, saying they were storing up trouble. Looks like they could have been right. BTW, the jail was stormed but the two men were found at a private house - the army did what they did because the police had handed them over to the militia. Oh yes, and a top-ranking Iraqi official had ordered their release. I think some of you need to get real. I’m opposed to the war too (as are most Brits) but there is no need to assume the very worst about everything and everybody. Some of the remarks here strike me as childish.

    • Hey 195 21, why did those two "innocent" Brit black ops troublemakers, dressed like Arabs, fire on the Iraqi police when they were stopped? If they had gotten away, the benighted western press would have attributed the attack to the Iraqi "insurgency." Who is being naive here?

    • Attributed what attack? There was no attack. And the use of the words ’black ops’ shows that you have already made your mind up. As far as you are concerned, it must be these people who are responsible for the horrors perpetrated daily against innocent people, and those who wish to serve their country.
      But think about this.
      What on earth would be the motive? The leaders of both the US and UK are desperate to get their troops home, not to have to put in more to deal with a looming civil war. There is only one group who can profit from this madness, and anyone with a free mind and a rational brain can see who it is.

    • > What on earth would be the motive?

      Propaganda brainwashing to ’help’ people believe that the disaster in Iraq is caused by Al-Qaeda (*), and not by the invasion forces ? (* Al-Qaeda is a TradeMark of the Public Diplomacy Departement)

      Another possible reason: Many Iraqis believe ’suicide’ bombings done by US to start a civil war

    • Truly, what planet are you on? Don’t you bother to read the AP report and other news reports about this incident? These two British SAS men were accused of shooting two Iraqi policemen> That’s "...what attack?". And, "The leaders of both the US and UK are desperate to get their troops home, not to have to deal with the looming civil war." ’Desperate to get their troops home," "Looming civil war"? "Looming"? What galaxy are you in? I dub thee "Polyanna."

    • IT deeply amazes me how you (Bush lovers in america to be included) think they can kill two policeman in Iraq and get by with it but still FULLY SUPPORT THE CONCENTRATION CAMPS THE US AND UK HAVE OVER THERE. Dont deny there is one for men, one for women and one for juveniles. The US and UK have no business in Iraq where they cant even take care of there own back yards.

    • I will attempt to reply to all of you ’truth-seekers’ in one message.
      I do not support the use of illegal ’concentration camps’ in Cuba, Afghanistan, Iraq or anywhere else.
      I do not support the assault on basic freedoms to ’fight terrorism’
      I do not believe that the US and UK are behind the appalling attacks on Iraqis, Americans or UK citizens. In particular, I believe those who alledge that the Leeds men who bombed London were government ’patsies’ are offering a ridiculous figleaf, behind which too many hide to avoid awkward truths.
      This story about the Basra incident has not been covered up. The UK media are talking about little else, and asking plenty of questions. I don’t know where you live, but maybe it’s not seen as being very important.
      Someone has alledged that the men were carrying bombs. I can find no reliable source of information which can verify that. If they WERE carrying bombs, then that is clearly much more serious.
      Where so many of you claim that the men ’attacked’ people, I see only men trying desperately to avoid arrest.
      I take it you all think it a fine thing that militias run the police, and that militias are trying to enforce Islamic law in Basra?? Be careful of calling me a liar - the last is easily verified, not least by those in contact with poeple who live there.
      So far, all you folks can come up with are wild conspiracy theories which ignore the most basic facts about those committing terrorism in Iraq and elsewhere. If they are ALL government people, they must be very dim boys indeed to let themselves be used in such a way!!!!
      I am no sucker or Polyanna - but I do believe that rational people should stick to rational thinking. The leaps of ’reasoning’ displayed by some posters are truly breathtaking.

    • 195 21 your various beliefs are irrelevant. What is relevant about you is your kneejerk reaction to advise us to wait until all of the facts are in before we think such impure thoughts about the British government. You bow and scrape to Blair and his ilk. The rest of us will criticize and demand answers from them.

      Also, why do you so blithely demonize Iraqi militiamen? Are they not also Iraqi citrizens, just like Allawi andf Chalabi? Why shouldn’t they become policemen in their own land? You follow the lead and view them as "infiltrators." I ask you, who are you to brand an Iraqi citizen an infiltrator? No, old boy. The infiltrators here were the two SAS men. It was they who were dressed as Iraqi militiamen.

      And, as far as the press coverage in the UK goes - it is virtually non-existent in the U.S. - most of it has focussed on the rescue mission of the SAS men, not the covert mission the SAS men were on. The UK MSM is as toothless and compromised as the MSM is in the U.S.

      You have offered nothing to disprove the allegations made by our Iraqi allies regarding this aborted false flag operation by its security forces, just your Pollyannish beliefs.

    • ’195 21 your various beliefs are irrelevant. What is relevant about you is your kneejerk reaction to advise us to wait until all of the facts are in before we think such impure thoughts about the British government. You bow and scrape to Blair and his ilk. The rest of us will criticize and demand answers from them’

      Any rational and thinking person can see that my posts here are anything but ’bowing and scraping to Blair and his ilk’. Anyone who can read my replies and still think that is clearly not very intelligent, so I rest my case.
      And yes, I do think that the militias are the bad guys. Particularly those who are attempting to enforce strict Islamic law on a people never before subject to it. Militiamen in the police who are loyal to their militia leaders and not to their government are a problem in ANY country - I’m truly gobsmacked that you cannot see that. And yes, the Brits were bloody idiots to let it happen, which they quite knowingly did.
      I am basically saying the same as the original contributor of the news item has just said in a post; I note you don’t criticize his reply. Is that because it would be hard to admit that he is rational and thoughtful, and wants a peaceful future for Iraq, whereas you seem only interested in endless bloodshed, war and the imposition of an Islamic theocracy? If that’s what you want for Iraqis, come right out and say it so that we all know where you stand.

  • Now we know who the real terrorist are. How about planting bombs in unsuspecting civilian vehicles and detonating them when they arrive close to a crowd of people. NO our government would never do that. Only just kill 3,000 americans on 9-11 now maybe. Lets put bush in the cross hairs now.

  • Do it yourself and accuse others. If you got caught tell lies about freedom and democracy and none existens improvements.

    America+British = fascists scumbags.

  • Well, it does appear that some "coalition of the willing" soldiers have been caught in the act of conspiring to commit "a terrorist act."

    It ’appears’ that the ’coalition of the willing’ governments are now ’complicit’ in a conspiracy to commit a terrorist act on unsuspecting innocent civilians; as well as having committed the criminal acts of murder during the ’rescue’ of the aforementioned ’conspiring terrorists.’

    We all know the law. We all know the standpoint of those members of the ’coalition of the willing.’ "If you are not with us then you are with the terrorists" (George W. Bush).

    So where does this little ’inconvenient’ incident leave those who fight against ’terrorism’?

    The Iraqi people will just have to try harder to free their country of Terrorists. My heart and sympathies go out to all those poor Iraqis who; due to their country’s resources of oil, are on the wrong side of the coalition of the willing.

    I offer my humblest apologies for my government’s actions towards the Iraqi people; Ninety percent of my fellow Australians DO NOT support this ’war of terror’ against the Islamic world.

    Synic.

    • Whoa!!!!!
      Where the hell does this allegation of terrorism come from? Do you really think that Brits undercover would plant bombs? What for - to blow themselves up? Well I think we can safely leave that to those who ’love death’, as they constantly tell us.
      The Brits in Basra have been criticized for allowing Al Sadr to infiltrate the police and other bodies. I don’t know how you console warriors think they are supposed to gather intelligence and combat militia infiltration - sit and read Voltaire, perhaps?

    • I am very sceptical about this comment. Previously the commentator seemed to appear neutral and imply that he is against the war! this fella seems to be one of those who is strongly pro war and wishes us to understand the Iraq War to be the one which wishes to "Liberate" Iraqis. By the way, the real terrorists are those who are killing the innocent iraqi civilians who wish to serve in their country’s army and police force. Only those who wish Iraq to be devastated for ever would try and disrupt these people whose intentions are to serve the nation. It will be only in the interest of the coalition of the willing to keep Iraq devasted so that they can continue plundering Iraq. Perfect example is the recent bombing of Iraqi contruction workers and mny other innocent (200 killed) exactly when the resolution for defining terrorism was tabled in the UN. This has been a classic strategy by the western occupier to divide communities, in this case shias and sunnis and posting messages from american based websites as if it was Al-qaida who is responsible for it! The attacks purely on the british and American troops are the only attacks the insurgents (freedom fighters) are responsible for. the rest of the attacks are very clearly master minded by the undercover coaliation agents demonising Islam and the very cause of the fighters who are opposing occupation! They have no mercy hence can do anything and play as dirty as they can at the cost of Muslim blood!

    • I am a woman, and I have ALWAYS been against the war and the lies that were told to free people to get us to wage it.
      And yes, it is the real terrorists who are ’killing the innocent iraqi civilians who wish to serve in their country’s army and police forces’. The ones who are blowing up and slaughtering new recruits, that is. The British and the Yanks have no motive for doing this, which is what you claim - they want to get their troops out, and the quicker the better.
      Why fire at the police? You don’t seem to be aware that the chief of police in Basra has publicly stated that 75% of his men cannot be trusted - that is, they owe allegiance primarily to commanders other than the state. That’s why the SAS shot at the police - they knew full well what their fate would be if they were captured. Oh yes, and the Interior Ministry of Iraq had ordered those men to be released.
      The people blowing innocent woman and children, hard-working builders, religious pilgrims etc etc to bits on a daily basis are your real enemies. They want a civil war, and with thinking like yours so fearfully common they are bound to get it.
      What a shame. What a terrible, terrible price for iraqis to pay for some kind of future.

    • The British and the Yanks have no motive for doing this, which is what you claim - they want to get their troops out, and the quicker the better.

      Outside of the British (gov’t) who are allied with the Americans (gov’t), I don’t know what the motive would be for the Brits to do this.

      I think you’re wrong in stating that ’the Yanks have no motive’ - oh, yes we do. Some of our PEOPLE and some of our legislators may NEVER have wanted this crap and still don’t. However, I have no doubt the Bush administration and those who buy into that "better to fight ’em there than fight ’em in our own streets" mentality have motive stacked upon motive.

      I have NO doubt of American involvement in incidents like these. I have NO doubt of American involvement in attacking those who we are supposedly there to defend in order to prolong this.....this....this obscenity.

    • You really think that your govt were involved in stuff like bombing markets, killing hordes of kids, attacks on pilgrims? What would the purpose be in a civil war, and a totally ungovernable country? Even if you believe (as i do) that massive thefts of both Iraqi oil revenues and US public funds are taking place, and that some would like to continue to do that, isn’t it true that this would be much more easily accomplished without all the bloodshed? I’m sorry, but it just doesn’t add up to pretend that the acts being committed against civilains are US-inspired. God, I hate that particular administration but there is such a thing as common sense.

  • The government has and is allowing illegal immigrants into America. The British government has allowed illegal immigrants into their country. Both of these countries allowed people of dark skin to infiltrate so this scam could take place.

    In England, I was told by a retired military official, that the British could not fly their country’s flag in their own front yards.

    It is clear that the government of England and the government of America and in this scam together. Wake up and smell the roses people before it is too late. Impeach Bush, and the indictments against Bush, his cabinet and Tony Blair will go forth.

    • You clearly know nothing about Britain - we have plenty of dark skinned people already, and don’t need to import them as some kind of cover for state-sponsored terrorist activity!!! It’s generally the odious Islam-hating far right who link immigration to terror and social disintegration, you know.
      Is anyone on this site remotely sane?

  • I’m sane, and as a sane person, I say that this incident needs further exploration and eyewitness statements. Also, this story needs to be in the front of the press. I had to actually do a manual search at CNN and BBC to find this story, otherwise, it would not have been found.
    Why don’t they want this story to be shown? Obviously, the public is very interested in this story, or would be, if they saw it. Isn’t news about ratings? Don’t they want ratings? Why hide the story..unless there is more to hide. First of all, you being so sane and everything, have yet to give a rational explanation as of why these two men would have fired upon a crowd of civilians before then exchanging fire with police? What was their "mission"?

    Huh? I mean, you call yourself sane, but you are on the other side of the coin lady, there’s the people who fully believe its a Brit. conspiracy, there’s those that fully doubt it.....both sides lack information.

    As for a motivation to provoke civil war and unrest.....we don’t want to bring our troops home, we need them in the middle east to be ready to fight future wars...which is part of the reason for the Iraq invasion. We were supposed to take that country by storm, and secure it, then stage an attack against Iran after we recruited the Iraqi military to help us....

    Well, it didn’t work, but we still need our troops there, if things go well in Iraq, we will be forced to bring our troops home.

    The only thing that’s keeping americans saying "keep the troops in Iraq" is the constant attack of insurgents....whoever they may be.

    • I agree that more investigation is needed as well as plenty of transparancy.

      At this time, it is not at all clear what happened and why. For example, the BA members could have been on a secret mission, which is a bit iffy, or just enganged in an activity they would not want others to know about, such as selling or buying on the black market.

      It is also unclear what the British response was. If, indeed, ten tanks attacked a jail and many prisoners escaped, this is a serious breach of British-Iraqi affairs.

      So, rather than drawing conclusions, I think it is time to ask questions.

      Lots of questions.

      John Mullen

    • Caught red handed....ha, ha, ha, busted, they were probably planting car bombs or road side mines....they do not want to leave Iraq and this allows them to pretend they are needed....the truth will come out and it will be another nail in the coffin of the Bushco & Co. war.

  • Stonefruit

    Reports are confused and contradictory but this seems to be the gist of it. On September 19th, with tensions running high in Basra after the arrest of two top-ranking members of al-Sadr’s organization, two men in a

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    Toyota Cressida ran a police ckeckpoint, shooting and killing at least one Iraqi policeman in Basra, Iraq. After a brief chase, they were stopped and taken into police custody.

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    Apparently they were two British SAS commandoes from the newly-formed Special Reconnaissance Regiment (the same outfit that murdered the Braziallian electrician de Menezes in cold blood on the London tube a a couple months ago) dressed up as members of al-Sadr’s Mahdi Army complete

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    with wigs and Arab dress, driving a car loaded to the gills with

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    bombs, weapons and communication gear, and possibly booby-trapped, seemingly with the intent to perform an act of sabotage to be blamed on "insurgents," perhaps in advance of the important Karbala Festival, marking the birth of Imam Mohammed al-Mahdi in 868 A.D. on the Christian calendar, beginning this week and expected to draw as many as 3 million pilgrims.

    An initial attempt by British tanks, armored personnel carriers and helicopters to free the men from prison ended badly when the people of Basra

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    pelted the tank with fire bombs and rocks.

    A second rescue attempt involved storming the jail again, this time destroying it

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    and enabling 150 prisoners to escape, to distract attention from a commando raid on a nearby house, which succeeded in extricating the special forces.

    As soon as the MSM learned about the disguises and weapons - basically that agent provocateurs had been caught red-handed - they shifted coverage to the "daring rescue mission" and blamed Iran (London Times and Reuters) for "stirring up Shia militias and fostering unrest in the peaceful Basra region." A fine bit of geopolitical three card monte.

    Many in Iraq, Iran and elsewhere have long suspected the "insurgent attacks" in Iraq have been perpetrated to justify the ongoing presence of the United States and the United Kingdom in Iraq, and create a civil war so that Iraq - like Yugoslavia before it - will disintegrate into a cluster of harmless statelets, greatly facilitating the dream of Greater Isreal among the Israeli far right.

    This incident must be placed in the historical context of a long tradition of false flag terrorism by Western military-intelligence forces. In Amerikkka, you can go back as far as Operation Northwoods or as recently as 911. Britain has used the technique of impersonating locals and conducting terrorism in its colonial wars in Malaysia, Yemen, and Kenya. In fact, the very unit these two British commandos came from grew out of another unit previously know to have infiltrated the Irish Republican Army and carried out terrorism to be pinned on them.

    Or look at the "strategy of tension" called Operation Gladio that wrecked havoc in Greece, Italy and Turkey, with highly reactionary elements in Western intelligence agencies and the Masonic lodge Propoganda Due carrying out terror attacks to blame on leftists to justify a consolidation of reactionary rule and heightened state power.

    Links a-plenty:

    the inimitable Rigorous Intuition: Carry on Killing

    Washington Post: British Smash Into Iraqi Jail To Free 2 Detained Soldiers

    The Simon: Fake Terrorism Is a Coalition’s Best Friend

    Socialist Worker: Why Basra is in revolt against occupation

    PEJ News: Basra Bizarre, SAS Commandos Arrested and Sprung

    Xin Hua: Iraqi police detain two British soldiers in Basra

    London Times: Police station raid was diversion as SAS squad rescued comrades

    • This post is one of the reasons I view Bellaciao as an indispensable source of information not available in the MSM. Thank you Stonefruit. With all of the good sourcing you have provided, I’m wondering what the doubters here are going to do with it. I suspect nothing, since the brain-challenged can only accept information that conforms to their preconceived notions of "Truth."

      They will say:

      "Black operations by SAS men? Absolutely not! They were merely on a recon mission. What would be the purpose of bombing and killing our allies when we’re on the side of the angels? False flag bombings and shootings? Inconceivable! We want to leave Iraq ASAP. Such acts would only prolong our stay. And, why would the UK government have to ’spin’ the facts of the event? These are honorable people dedicated to Truth and Justice. Only a warped mind could think otherwise."

      How sad, these Neocon Echo Chambers truly are.

    • What is the MSM???????
      By the way, the only echo-chamber around here is the void between the ears of those who SHOULD be thinking but are merely reurgitating unfounded rumours which happen to fit with your world-views. This is not free thinking, it’s a an abuse of the process!

    • Excellent article stone fruit! and befitting reply!

      Keep this good work up!

      You guys have made my day!

    • > What is the MSM???????

      MainStream Media, those mass media whose reports about what’s going on in Iraq are often reduced to car bombing by insurgents/terrorists/Al-Qaeda targeting the Iraqi population. If you are a bit curious and accept to do some research, you may discover another (uncomfortable) dimension of the reality of the war on Iraq.

      You don’t need to abide to any of the so-called conspiracy theories, just to be critical and search for the truth (even if you don’t find THE truth, you will most probably get closer to it than by passively "eating" the MSM fast-food.)

    • You have nothing to say except, "I don’t accept this information." But where is the information upon which you are relying? Don’t you want to share it with the great mass of unwashed dolts here who have been taken in by all of this bad information? We await your enlightenment, Pollyanna.

    • This is the main problem of the people "who don’t (want to) see": You are asking someone else to bring you the information. If you rely only on news brought to you, you may miss some other key elements which would help to understand the whole thing, you take the risk to be confined in a one sided opinion, you are more exposed to mis-/dis-information.

      A lot of information and evidences are publicly accessible, just go for them. You’ll find the results of your research more valuable and credible.

      Internet is the best tool you have at hands (Even MSM journalists are using it). I don’t say you have to trust everything you see or read, Internet is just a media fed by people, but it opens a lot more doors to resources. Vary your sources of information, compare those info, use archives, go to the library and buy books, consult the "official" documents and compare the political speeches over the time, try to find answers to as much "why" as you can. As I said, be critical, ask questions, don’t WAIT for enlightenment, get it.

      If you are asking my point of view on the topic of the above article, well, *I* don’t know for sure what has happened in Basra. I can’t tell and prove that the uncovered mission of the two British soldiers was a black-op to feed the public opinion feeling that a US-UK intervention is needed to stop the Al-Qaeda terrorist treat over the Iraqi population (Note that Al-Qaeda was non-existant in Iraq prior to March 2003). Maybe the mission was something else, I really don’t know. But based on all the information I’ve collected about the 2003 invasion of Iraq and prior military interventions since 1991, about the American foreign policy, about the lies and staged new from the USA and UK governments, about how news from Iraq are circulating (or not) ... I find that such a black-op IS a credible possibility. And I consider this is something to explore.

      Something far more destructive than the attacks in New-York, Washington, London, Madrid, is happening in Iraq. Althought our MSM don’t do body count nor call for any "minute of silence" or other commemoration, a lot of people are being killed in Iraq. I can tell you for sure that WE have a big responsibility in this massacre.

      I don’t want you to believe me on my own words, I’m expecting you not to be blind.

    • I can assure you that I DO look further than the mainstream media. And I do use the internet - kind of obvious really
      I’m interested to see that you do not try to back up the assertions previously made about alledged state-sponsored terrorism on 9/11 and 7/7. It was this assertion that quite frankly led me to believe that you were all nuts. Not because I have never heard the idea before - it’s something I have looked into carefully and have never yet seen any really good evidence of it. Not because I don’t know how to find it, or cannot be bothered to look, but because it is deeply unconvincing.
      As for all the rest - the lies which got us into the war, the greater aims of the Bush administration’s darkest forces - we have no argument there. If you had read my posts carefully you would have noticed that I am no gung-ho neocolonialist.

    • Most contributors here seem to have very strong preconceptions and so will never really understand the situation for what it is. It is at least as much cock-up as conspiracy. My guess is that some idiots in the British Army were doing something stupid, trying to contain inter-militia rivalry in Iraq (which, if you care about the future of Iraq is the real problem, becuase eventually foreign troops must go). Clearly they are not competant to manage the situation and should get out. Britain and US should apologize to the UN and request (and fund) a UN peacekeeping force to oversee the transition to stable civillian government in Iraq with UN-agreed critreia and deadlines. Iraq should be one of the most prosperous and civilized countries in the world, but a combination of international greed, local stupidty and religious dogmatism have left it factionalized and starving. Fat cats typing imflammatory bullshit from the comfort of their PCs should think twice before encouraging another set of religious nutters to add to the carnage.

    • ’Fat cats typing imflammatory bullshit from the comfort of their PCs should think twice before encouraging another set of religious nutters to add to the carnage.’

      So very true. I find the willingness to believe any old rubbish because it is posted someplace else very worrying indeed. This stuff about explosives in the car - there is no independent verification that anyone can find. The pictures taken by the Iraqi police of the contents of the car do not appear to include explosives - certainly not the ’packed with’ description being circulated.
      But when folks openly post that they think terrorist attacks in the UK and US are black ops, not based on any evidence but on gut feeling, I really do despair. A friend of mine saw one of the would-be ’martyrs’ attempt to blow himself up in London on July 22nd, and there was no question of a remote detonation set up by rogue security forces.
      The problem is Alaa Habib that some people don’t like the cock-up explanation of this particular bloody mess. It’s not as much fun as a giant conspiracy, no matter how unlikely that might be. Those who believe in the conspiracies will keep believing, and no doubt they will still be telling us how blinkered and stupid we are for many years to come. Even when the facts come out, which some day they will.
      Your suggestion about the UN is fine - but would they do it? Why should the UN try and tidy up the mess which the US and UK made against their express wishes? And when the US is so highly critical of everything they do in any case?

  • wOULD IRAQIS GET THE MESSAGE????

    BRITISH AND THE ISRAELI MOUSSAD ARE ALL OVER IRAQ FOR ONE GOAL>>> CREAT CIVIL WAR BETWEEN SUNNY AND SHIA IN IRAQ AS A THE FIRST STEP TO DEVIDE IRAQ INTO LITTLE WEAK GROUPS AND KEEP THEM FIGHTING EACH OTHER TO PREVENT A STRONG UNITED IRAQ.

    IRAQI PEOPLE GOD HE;P YOU AND SAVE YOU FROM THE EVIL FORCES.

  • Who’s the terrorist state now????? Normally I would give the benefit of the doubt but the U.S. and Britain have lied so consistently throughout this invasioon that to believe there version of the occurence would be beyond naive.

    Lupen52

    • Oh come on man those 2 guys are innocent those bombs in there car were ones that they picked up from the terrorist that were planted there. same thing about all those guns they were also just picked up. The black wigs well they were just trying to fit in is all. I’m sure they were just doing there work and they were attacked by the Iraqies.