At Least Nine Dead in Attack on U.S. Convoy in Iraq

[Flagg]

At Least Nine Dead in Attack on U.S. Convoy in Iraq
20 minutes ago Add Top Stories - Reuters to My Yahoo!



BAGHDAD (Reuters) - Insurgents attacked a U.S. convoy carrying fuel west of Baghdad Friday, killing at least nine people, witnesses said.






A Reuters photographer on the scene said he saw bodies burning inside the vehicles, which were still on fire near Abu Ghraib. He said the convoy included U.S. military vehicles and fuel tankers.


Huge clouds of black smoke hung over the area, visible from several kilometers away. There was heavy fighting between U.S. troops and guerrillas in Abu Ghraib Thursday.


http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/nm/20040409/ts_nm/iraq_convoy_dc&cid=564&ncid=1473

[Systematic Chaos]

1. AGAIN??

'Scuse the language, but I'm fucking SICK of this. Oh man I'm bummed.

[qanda]

2. Oh no!

Prayers for Mari's son-- I hope he's safe.

[tom_paine]

46. Ditto.

:scared:

[sniffa]

3. 9 miLitary dead?

the articLe doesn't say. not that it shouLd make any difference, but 'murkkins' seem to onLy care if it's a soLdier.

[Zynx]

4. I would assume that there are some military dead there.

However, one can't be sure.

[jpak]

48. Halliburton contractors????

These guys are probably having second thoughts about their $125Ka year trucker contracts....

[0007]

5. What's it gonna take to stop this carnage?

How many terroirist were born today? junior must be removed immediately.

[leftchick]

6. It seems to be emboldening recruits for the Uprising too!

last paragragh....

Truckloads of people from the area have also tried to head further west to help other insurgents battling U.S. forces in Falluja and Ramadi.

[Flagg]

7. kick

[xchrom]

8. just insane

this is giving me some really bad feelings about the future.

[kentuck]

9. Now read this link just below:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=102x474905

Notice the location??

[Flagg]

10. please rate this story a 5 because it's disapearing fast

[Ilsa]

11. Kick back up.

And it ties to the other thread listed by kentuck (good catch). Nerve wracking.

Prayers.

[leftchick]

12. God this looks terrible.... Photos

Iraqi youths plunder a convoy of burning fuel trucks after it was attacked in the Baghdad suburb of Abu Ghraib April 9, 2004. Insurgents attacked a U.S. convoy carrying fuel west of Baghdad on Friday, killing at least nine people, witnesses said. (Akram Saleh/Reuters)



An Iraqi insurgent celebrates in front of a burning US tanker in Abu Gharib. Chaos spread in Iraq (news - web sites) on the first anniversary of Saddam Hussein (news - web sites)'s ouster as US forces resumed their offensive in the besieged town of Fallujah after a brief suspension while insurgents seized foreign hostages as bargaining chips.(AFP/Antonio Scorza)

[floda]

15. Radio Australia News: "12 oiltankers on fire , 1 american driver hostage"

US convoy attacked west of Baghdad

A United States convoy carrying fuel has been attacked by insurgents west of the Iraqi capital, Baghdad, killing at least nine people.

A photographer from the Reuters news agency on the scene says he saw bodies burning inside the vehicles.

Our correspondent, Peter Cave, reports from the scene that he passed about 12 oil tankers on fire before the road was blocked by two trucks blazing fiercely.

Columns of thick black smoke poured high into the air, visible from kilometres away.

Our correspondent says an American man is being held in a car by a group of armed mujahadeen.

The mujahadeen say the man, wounded in the arm and the leg, is a truck driver and is their hostage.


http://www.abc.net.au/ra/newstories/RANewsStories_1084791.htm

[leftchick]

16. Well if it is this guy, he seems to be dead now...

I am guessing he is another "contractor"...




An Iraqi insurgent walks past the driver of a US tanker who was killed after a rocket-propelled grenade (RPG) attack on a US convoy in Abu Gharib.(AFP/Antonio Scorza)

[leftchick]

13. WHOA! ... Photo Of Dead Convoy Driver....

Hard to tell if he is Military...




An Iraqi insurgent walks past the driver of a US tanker who was killed after a rocket-propelled grenade (RPG) attack on a US convoy in Abu Gharib.(AFP/Antonio Scorza)

[Dhalgren]

14. Doesn't "look" military.

Maybe the mercs are having to earn their pay. This could be why the article said "nine people" instead of "soldiers" - the reporter wasn't sure of their "status" either.

[saigon68]

22. Hey LC--- Whats going on?

These guys are strolling around like there is a picnic, with carnival rides and clowns in the park.

I have never seen anything like this. When they attacked a convay in Nam, unless the weather was bad, the Air Force FAC was there instantly. The weather looks pretty good, why no air cover? any comments on this vets? Mac I'd like to hear your take.

WTF is going on? And Ya that guy on the ground has had it.

[leftchick]

25. Damned if I know saigon....

I saw video of this on msrnc with the trucks burning and the Iraqis dancing around. WTF is right, where is the air force? Do you suppose this was a supply convoy for Fallujah? I think that dead guy is another "contractor" what do you think?

[saigon68]

33. Looks like it ---No flak vest

Hard to tell from only 1 picture

[leftchick]

35. I would like to see the whole picture...

It looks like it was cropped. I think it looks like he may have a vest under his shirt.

[saigon68]

38. That may be a vest under his shirt

A truck driver or trooper would want the vest to go on last-- not first. At times you want to be able to take it off.

A thug like the one in the Red Tie below, always puts his vest on first under his shirt. A flak vest/ body armor doesn't look good with a tie.

And in the case of Pontius the Viceroy of Eastern Iraq-Nam below:--- the Sheep who hang on his every word might get upset with the pacification, if they saw him wearing a Vest.

[atreides1]

45. I'd Guess A Contractor

Most military personnel wear either brown or black t-shirts under their uniforms, possibly with the exception of the Navy.

And if this guy is a sailor, he's a long way from his ship.

[bpilgrim]

39. too many fires to put out

not enough fire fighters, imo

not to mention that our stuff doesn't always work right with all that sand over there... after a year i am sure the gear has taken a beating.

FUBAR

peace

[Mari333]

17. Michael emailed he said its getting worse, hes at Abu Ghraib

says hes inside a concrete bunker. Im going to DC on the 13th, press conference with MFSO. okay, today will be bad, its going to be bad because its a holy day. If you want to help, get on the phone, call your senators and congress today and tell them to get the troops home now...be determined when you call them, call your republican and Dem senators and congressmen..dont let them cut you off, be strong and call them...
mari

[underpants]

19. CONTACT INFO

http://www.visi.com/juan/congress/

[Barrett808]

37. Fax to my senators

Just sent this via faxaway.com:

The Honorable Maria Cantwell
United States Senate
717 Hart Senate Office Building
Washington, D.C. 20510-4704
DC Phone: [phone]
DC Fax: [phone]

Senator Cantwell:

It is time to admit to ourselves that the illegal invasion of Iraq is the worst foreign policy catastrophe since Vietnam. As a counterinsurgency war, it is unwinnable. The unconscionable, criminal arrogance of the Bush regime is matched only by the unbelievable incompetence of its neo-conservative advisors. They have no exit strategy, and their "plan" for transfer of nominal sovereignty to a puppet government is transparently motivated by the hope that Americans will have forgotten about the disaster by November; this "plan" is doomed to fail.

The only potentially viable solution is to throw the whole festering quagmire into the lap of the UN and NATO, and even then, the situation is probably hopeless. Please do everything in your power to pressure the gangsters squatting in the White House to withdraw our troops now. The Iraqi people will figure it out on their own.

I recall that you voted for the ill-conceived war resolution, and for that I will never forgive you. But you might redeem yourself in my eyes if you help extricate us from this mess by advocating the immediate withdrawal of our troops.

Sincerely,

Barrett808

[Lorien]

40. Great letter!

We should make our voices heard with the media as well. And just a reminder; it's been noted by many sources that one hardcopy (especially hand written) letter is as powerful as 100 e-mails.Here's a resource for others to find addresses for media and reps in their area:http://www.democrats.org/speakout/index.html

[Barrett808]

41. I always send faxes instead of emails

Faxaway is a pretty great service for this, been using it for years. (I'm not affiliated with Faxaway...heh...)

[Barkley]

51. Barrett808 you've got a tradition of excellence on DU posts

Great Letter!

You've inspired me to write my senator "DiFi"
(aka Diane Feinstein who also voted for the IWR).

[Barrett808]

64. Thank you, that's high praise indeed

Trying to keep the discourse on a sophisticated level.

[NMDemDist2]

68. oh gosh this is so sad- Please read and comment

I "paraphrased" your letter and softened the language just a bit and went online to get a fax number. The first stop was Senator John Kyl (R-AZ) and read some of his "Legislative Centers" documents. I might as well send a fax to the freerepublic'ers. To be honest as a small business owner here in Phoenix, I am afraid (can't believe I'm saying this) to rock the boat to much. What if Ashcroft really is targeting anti-war people? I already went to jail for Gulf War 1, but didn't have anything to lose then. Now I have my husband and my employees to think of. Am I being too paranoid? Help!

[Teaser]

23. You are an inspiring person.

Just wanted to let you know that.

[Skittles]

50. she is indeed amazing

I am always thinking of Marianne and her husband and her boy Michael.

[MUAD_DIB]

63. I wish you and your family well, Mari.

Give 'em hell, and then give 'em hell again. :)

[Cooley Hurd]

18. This explains the cease-fire in Fallujah...

No fuel now to run tanks, humvees. Possible that the convoy was also carrying ammo? :shrug:

[Dhalgren]

20. If I were the insugents, I wouldn't cease fire.

[theHandpuppet]

36. Sounds likely to me...

The "coalition" is calling a cease-fire so they can safely get their resupply convoys in. Once supplied with fresh fuel and ammo, the "ceasefire" is called off. This sounds like a trick to me. but I'm not a military person.

[JNelson6563]

21. I've had the news on in the background

all day and I have not heard anything of this on TV.

Pravda.

Julie

[catmandu57]

24. Cut off the supply

and those marines in Falluja are down to hand to hand. They must have be mercs in that convoy.

[Beetwasher]

26. The Insurgents Have SEIZED THE MAIN HIGHWAYS!!!

Insurgents seize main highway between western Iraq towns

ABU GHARIB, Iraq (AFP) - Armed insurgents seized control of the highway linking the predominantly Sunni Muslim town of Abu Gharib with the besieged city of Fallujah further west of Baghdad, an AFP correspondent revealed.


http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=1514&e=1&u=/afp/iraq_abugharib

[yelladawg]

27. Bush led troops are getting their butts kicked

Someone tell bush they brought it on.

[kentuck]

28. That doesn't make you happy, does it?

Someone might interpret your comment that way?

[yelladawg]

30. Just shows how bad it is

A war built on lies isn't worth one American death. Let the protest begin to bring the troops home from an unjust war.

[The Stranger]

31. Then tell them the problem is with AWOL, who wouldn't even serve

and was AWOL for his guard duty.

[The Stranger]

32. Nowhere in U.S. media, even co-opted NPR doesn't run any casualty

reports, but they have already lost my annual contribution with their inbed coverage of this war.

[Dhalgren]

34. It doesn't make me happy,

but for myself, I am solidly in support of the Iraqi people. If I am forced to take "sides" in this thing (and we all will be so forced, sooner or later), then I side with the Iraqis. The US, and that includes the Armed Forces, are 100% in the wrong in this conflict. The lie is that we went into Iraq to "help" the Iraqi people. Now, we are slaughtering them for no damn reason. We will probably wind up bombing Fallujah out of existence, and killing gods know how many people - and for nothing other than our own agrandizement. So, no, none of this makes me happy, but I want the Iraqis to "win" this, if "winning" is even possible anymore.

[kentuck]

53. Wow!

I believe you are entitled to your belief. I respect that but I cannot pull for the Iraqis if that means we lose our own brothers and sisters...

[Dhalgren]

55. I understand your position,

and I don't relish mine. But, if my brother were ina neighbor's yard, killing people, I would want him stopped. I would hate it if he were hurt, but I would want him to be stopped. This is how I feel when I see what we are doing in Iraq. It no longer matters who the agressors are, they must be stopped.

[kentuck]

60. I could not argue that you do not hold the moral position...

It's simply a choice that I could not personally make...

[mmm]

59. It is difficult to rise above nationalism

I have to agree with you. And also, like you I am sure, it tears
at me to feel that way.

[54anickel]

29. Did you go thru the slide show at that link? The first one is the burning

of puppets representing Shrub and Sharon.

[Ripley]

42. TV said it was now only 2 dead, not 9.

But who knows? The military's fuzzy math never adds up.

[leftchick]

43. Krazy Kimmett Now Saying 2 dead....

1 US Military and 1 Iraqi civil defense. Which brings me back to the dead person in the photo I posted above. From what I could see he doesn't look like either Military or an Iraqi.

[Barrett808]

44. Two U.S. Soldiers Killed in Iraq

BAGHDAD, Iraq - Two U.S. soldiers were killed in Baghdad on Friday, one when insurgents attacked a convoy transporting fuel toward the western edge of the capital, the military said. An Iraqi driver in the convoy also was killed.

A Baghdad correspondent for the Arab satellite broadcaster Al-Jazeera said the convoy had been carrying fuel near Al-Amiriyah and that not less than nine people were killed in the attack. The report said none of the dead had been identified.

Gunmen carrying automatic weapons and rocket-propelled grenades struck a tanker truck in convoy in Abu Ghreib on the main highway entering western Baghdad. A huge cloud of black smoke was seen rising over the city after the attack.

The second soldier was killed in an attack using roadside bombs and small arms at Camp Cook, a U.S. base in northern Baghdad, the military said.

At least 643 U.S. soldiers have died in Iraq since the war began in March 2003.

http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/ap/20040409/ap_on_re_mi_ea/iraq_soldiers_killed&cid=540&ncid=1480

[leftchick]

47. This dead guy does not look like an Iraqi or a US Soldier...

I think they are fudging numbers and trying to hide those pesky contractor deaths that raise so many questions....




An Iraqi insurgent walks past the driver of a US tanker who was killed after a rocket-propelled grenade (RPG) attack on a US convoy in Abu Gharib.(AFP/Antonio Scorza)

[Barkley]

52. Florence & Normandie in 1992

[Az_lefty]

49. This sounds like a KBR convoy.

they took over our fuel mission, hauling fuel to Anaconda which is northwest of Baghdad. They travel with MP escorts.

[saigon68]

54. I wonder how much KBR is paid?

where were their military escorts?

apparently no air cover either. Just one helicopter gunship would have at least prevented the

"VICTORY DANCE" above

just my thought?

[mmm]

57. THIS is how we protect our supply lines?

I just don't get it.

[Robbien]

56. Yep. And some reports say that KBR have over 40 deaths in Iraq

We should just not be there.

Imagine the anger of Iraqis seeing their oil being driven out of their country by Americans.

[Blue_Tires]

58. anyone else tired

of watching americans die on the news???

just get out....leave the iraqis ALONE...i don't care if their government will resemble Iran, the USSR, or ancient mongolia...just leave them to their own devices...

and leave the I/P conflict alone, too...sooner or later one side will crush the other, and that's the side we should start relations with...sometimes it's better to just not get involved...

[PurityOfEssence]

61. Hey, at least somebody knows it's ALL ABOUT OIL...

Here we are, on a looting greedfest of a country with the second largest oil supplies, yet we're importing fuel into the place...

You can't guard everyplace all at once with this few people...

[jmcgowanjm]

62. Supply trains have always been weak link

This has got to be escalated or we pull back
and put Saddam back on the throne.

We put just enough soldiers in to create chaos.

We bought off the top Iraqi Generals. That's why
we got into Baghdad as quickly as we did.

But everyone we bought off is out of country now.

According to resistance blogs, every Iraqi knows
what's coming 2 days before we do.

[NickB79]

65. Looks like they're drawing us into a trap

Amass US forces in a spot where you have the advantage of cover, familiar territory, supplies and a sympathetic populace, engage the US forces there, and while they're occupied send a secondary force to circle behind them and cut off their supply lines.

Who's running this operation, General Custer?

[nodehopper]

66. BBC just said: past 5 days:47 coalition dead, 450 Iraqi civilians

[nodehopper]

67. oh, and apparently the 450 civilians are in Fallujah alone.

who knows how many more dead...

[saigon68]

69. These are War Crimes folks

It's Lidice 1942 for offing Heydrich

Here its Fallujah 2004 for offing 4 Blackwater employees

And Krazy Kimmett is Kurt Daluege

Click to see him

http://www.spartacus.schoolnet.co.uk/GERdaluege.htm

[Barrett808]

70. Good find, saigon68

I see that he was convicted and hanged.