Home > Take them out, dude: pilots toast hit on Iraqi ’civilians’

Take them out, dude: pilots toast hit on Iraqi ’civilians’

by Open-Publishing - Wednesday 6 October 2004
8 comments

Wars and conflicts International

By Andrew Buncombe in Washington

06 October 2004

The Pentagon said yesterday it was investigating cockpit video footage that shows American pilots attacking and killing a group of apparently unarmed Iraqi civilians.

The 30-second clip shows the pilot targeting the group of people in a street in the city of Fallujah and asking his mission controllers whether he should "take them out". He is told to do so and, shortly afterwards, the footage shows a huge explosion where the people were. A second voice can be heard on the clip saying: "Oh, dude."

The existence of the video, taken last April inside the cockpit of a US F-16 fighter has been known for some time, though last night’s broadcast by Channel 4 News is believed to be the first time a mainstream broadcaster has shown the footage.

At no point during the exchange between the pilot and controllers does anyone ask whether the Iraqis are armed or posing a threat. Critics say it proves war crimes are being committed.

http://news.independent.co.uk/world/americas/story.jsp?story=569207

Forum posts

  • Why should anyone be surprised that war crimes have been committed? It is for this exact reason the US does not want to joint the international court. Because we don’t know it, that does not mean, it is not happening. You cannot be an occupier and be benevolent. There is a choice to be made

  • Support our troops....the murdering bastards need you suckers to approve of them and cheer them on....so everyone go buy a bumper sticker and get your pom poms out....hurray team! score: US troops 30,000 civilian casualties - Iraqi resistance 1,065.....we are winning......

    • Thank you to who ever wrote this. Yes we must support our troops. My son has been in Iraq for 9 months now. I haven’t seen him in 18 months. He is doing the job he signed up for and he believes in what he is doing. How can he do his job right with Media reporting like this?

      HOORRAAYYY US Troops!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

    • Are you really proud that the only job your son could get was murdering people for money?

    • Would you sacrifice your child to a corrupt government and war so that you could claim honor?

  • Do you media people like spreading bad news? Is that what makes you great? How about some good news, good things are also happening in Iraq. How about reporting what is right. My son is in Iraq, he even says the media blows things way out of proportion. Is this your idea of reporting what is right, or are you just in it for ratings?

  • I’ve seen on the internet a clip from CNN that is a year or so old that shows our soldiers taking shots at a wounded Iraqi until they kill him. Immediately after there was a marine (?) talking about how it felt really good to kill him. Although I know that the vast majority of our soldiers are good, honorable men and women, these few bad apples give them all a bad image, and when they go unpunished, it only encourages them and others like them.

    • The comments above continue to show how insensitive some American can be. This does not imply that all American are insensitive. Those who want to be occupier will pay the price with their youth in blood no matter where and what time in history. If that is the way you want history to judge you, so be it. You are heading toward another defeat. This time around you are not taking the world down with you.