The Report on the Sgrena Shooting

[Guest MikeSC]

Report clears U.S. in friendly fire incident

Italian negotiator failed to coordinate rescue with U.S. military

By Jim Miklaszewski

Correspondent

NBC News

Updated: 7:37 p.m. ET April 13, 2005

 

BAGHDAD - The friendly fire shooting at a U.S. military checkpoint last month in Baghdad wounded Italian journalist Giuliana Sgrena and killed intelligence agent Nicola Calipari.

 

Now, NBC News has learned that a preliminary report from a joint U.S.-Italian investigation has cleared the American soldiers of any wrongdoing and provides new details into the shooting.

 

Intelligence agent Calipari had just negotiated Sgrena's release from Iraqi kidnappers on March 4 when the two and a driver headed for the Baghdad airport in a compact rental car.

 

It was dark when the Italians turned onto a ramp leading to the airport road where the U.S. military had set up a temporary checkpoint.

 

The investigation found the car was about 130 yards from the checkpoint when the soldiers flashed their lights as a warning to stop. But the car kept coming and, at 90 yards, warning shots were fired. At 65 yards, when the car failed to stop, the soldiers used lethal force — a machine gun burst that killed Calipari and wounded Sgrena and the driver.

 

Senior U.S. military officials say it took only about four seconds from the first warning to the fatal shots, but insist the soldiers acted properly under the current rules of engagement.

 

The investigation failed, however, to resolve one critical dispute: The Americans claim the car was racing toward the checkpoint at about 50 miles per hour, the Italians say it was traveling at a much slower speed.

 

In Italy, agent Calipari was given a state funeral, but the investigation found he himself may have committed a fatal error. He reportedly chose not to coordinate his movements with the U.S. military for fear it would jeopardize his efforts to free the Italian hostage.

 

Sgrena, meanwhile, disputes the military's account and says she has little confidence the investigation will reveal the truth.

 

As a result of the incident, the U.S. military will review its procedures regarding the use of lethal force at checkpoints, but senior military officials say they'll take no action that would put American soldiers at greater risk.

http://msnbc.msn.com/id/7491280/

-=Mike

[kkktookmybabyaway 0]

This is why you always obey military soldiers and the PO-lice...

[Jobber of the Week 0]

Fuck the police, although in Iraq I think they tend to be a less assholes and more interested in getting work done.

 

The critical thing missing in this report is exactly why they didn't have clearance to pass through in the first place. Clearly somebody inside believed the people at the checkpoint knew in advance what was going on.

 

Contrary to Mike's title, I don't think anything in this article implies anyone is lying or disproved anyone's claims, although long before this point it was painfully obvious the reporter who survived is a raving loon.

[Guest MikeSC]

Fuck the police, although in Iraq I think they tend to be a less assholes and more interested in getting work done.

 

The critical thing missing in this report is exactly why they didn't have clearance to pass through in the first place. Clearly somebody inside believed the people at the checkpoint knew in advance what was going on.

 

Contrary to Mike's title, I don't think anything in this article implies anyone is lying or disproved anyone's claims, although long before this point it was painfully obvious the reporter who survived is a raving loon.

The reporter said the US intentionally targeted her.

 

The report, in no uncertain terms, has shown her claims to be bald-faced lies. Just as, oh, I called within a day of the incident occurring.

-=Mike

[Jobber of the Week 0]

Oh, okay. I hadn't been keeping up with her insanity, as I kind of stopped reading her opinions when the car turned out to not even have lost it's windshield while she rambled on about millions of bullets penetrating the cabin.

[Guest MikeSC]

MORE news:

 

The military's claim that her car was speeding and never slowed down has been proven correct.

 

Of course, the story is from CBS, so no guarantee that it's actually truthful.

US satellite recorded checkpoint shooting, shows speed of Italian car: CBS

 

Fri Apr 29,12:28 PM ET

 

WASHINGTON (AFP) - A US satellite reportedly recorded a checkpoint shooting in

Iraq last month, enabling investigators to reconstruct how fast a car carrying a top Italian intelligence official and a freed hostage was traveling when US troops opened fire.

 

The report, which aired Thursday on CBS News, said US investigators concluded from the recording that the car was traveling at a speed of more than 60 miles (96 km) per hour.

 

Giuliana Sgrena has said the car was traveling at a normal speed of about 30 miles an hour when the soldiers opened fired, wounding her and killing Nicola Calipari, the Italian agent who had just secured her release from a month's captivity.

 

US soldiers said at the time of the March 4 incident that the car approached at a high rate of speed and that they fired only after it failed to respond to hand signals, flashing bright lights and warning shots.

 

The conflicting accounts were among a number of differences that have prevented US and Italian authorities from reaching agreement on what happened.

 

CBS, citing

Pentagon officials, said the satellite recording enabled investigators to reconstruct the event without having to rely on the eyewitness accounts.

 

It said the soldiers manning the checkpoint first spotted the Italian car when it was 137 yards (meters) away. By the time they opened fire and brought the car to a halt, it was 46 yards (meters) away. CBS said that happened in less than three seconds, which meant the car had to be going over 60 miles an hour.

 

CBS said Italian investigators refused to accept that the Americans were justified in shooting so quickly, arguing among other things that the checkpoint was not properly marked.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20050429/pl_af...HNlYwMlJVRPUCUl

Man, I wonder where guys like Sek69 and INXS, who attempted to claim that this was not the case, are now.

-=Mike

[kkktookmybabyaway 0]

Both haven't been around as of late, so I wouldn't expect a response anytime soon...

[Guest CronoT]

Of course, the story is from CBS, so no guarantee that it's actually truthful.

Let it go, Mike. You're starting to beat that dead horse into jelly.

[kkktookmybabyaway 0]

Letting it go implies that CBS is now a respected news organization...

[The Czech Republic 0]

Of course, the story is from CBS, so no guarantee that it's actually truthful.

Let it go, Mike. You're starting to beat that dead horse into jelly.

 

Dead horse beater CronoT chimes in.

[Guest MikeSC]

Of course, the story is from CBS, so no guarantee that it's actually truthful.

Let it go, Mike. You're starting to beat that dead horse into jelly.

Well, I suppose I could start a board dedicated to insulting an individual person --- but, lord, NOBODY is that pathetic.

-=Mike

[Guest CronoT]

Of course, the story is from CBS, so no guarantee that it's actually truthful.

Let it go, Mike. You're starting to beat that dead horse into jelly.

Well, I suppose I could start a board dedicated to insulting an individual person --- but, lord, NOBODY is that pathetic.

-=Mike

1. I started that board almost a month before.

2.If you don't "let it go," you're going to give yourself an ulcer; if you don't already have one, that is.

 

What I'm saying is, they fucked up, we all know it. Let's move on.

[Jingus 0]

Are you kidding? Do you know how often it is that one of these CE debates ends with one side being factually proven to be completely correct? Mike will brag about it for days.

[Guest MikeSC]

I'm actually used to being correct.

-=Mike

...Now, when one of the liberal members of the board is proven correct, yes, that might be a problem...

[Lord of The Curry 0]

Thank Christ that America has Mike to defend her every time she gets shit on.

 

Awesome thread.

[Guest CronoT]

Oh boy, someone really kicked the bee's nest now.

[Red Baron 0]

Letting it go implies that CBS is now a respected news organization...

When has CBS ever been a respected news organization?

[Guest Salacious Crumb]

Letting it go implies that CBS is now a respected news organization...

When has CBS ever been a respected news organization?

It was before Dan Rather was the anchor.

[Guest MikeSC]

Letting it go implies that CBS is now a respected news organization...

When has CBS ever been a respected news organization?

It was before Dan Rather was the anchor.

Even then it was full of shit.

 

I won't even go into how poorly the media covered such events as the Tet Offensive or how Cronkite has no business criticizing anybody for being biased.

-=Mike

[Big Ol' Smitty 0]

Funny note on this report. The American report was released with tons of classified portions blacked out. However, the whizzes released it as a .pdf file, so all you have to do is save it as a text file and you can read all the classified stuff (not that it's interesting).

 

http://www.corriere.it/Media/Documenti/Classified.pdf