kids, candy, First Cav, sewage plant, 35 kids dead

The bombs in Baghdad's al-Amel neighborhood caused the largest death toll of children in any insurgent attack since the conflict in Iraq began 17 months ago.

"The Americans called us, they told us, 'Come here, come here,' asking us if we wanted sweets. We went beside them, then a car exploded," said 12-year-old Abdel Rahman Dawoud, lying naked in a hospital bed with shrapnel embedded all over his body.


Who out there thinks that the American military is morally responsible for luring these kids out into danger under prevailing conditions? This is immoral and criminally stupid behavior. And these kids are dead and it was just another sentence or two in the newspaper and military spokesperson Lt. Col. Steve Boylan wonders whether they will hold any more such events. Not even an apology for this ignorance.

This belongs in Apocalypse Now or the Eternal City depravity in Catch-22.

Shame on us. Shame.

www.thestar.com.../Layout/Article_Type1&c=Article&cid=1096539408135&call_pageid= 968332188854&col=968350060724&tacodalogin=no

I think that's the link you are looking for. There have been other reports of this happening as well.

Originally posted by Teiresias
The bombs in Baghdad's al-Amel neighborhood caused the largest death toll of children in any insurgent attack since the conflict in Iraq began 17 months ago.

"The Americans called us, they told us, 'Come here, come here,' asking us if we wanted sweets. We went beside them, then a car exploded," said 12-year-old Abdel Rahman Dawoud, lying naked in a hospital bed with shrapnel embedded all over his body.


Who out there thinks that the American military is morally responsible for luring these kids out into danger under prevailing conditions? This is immoral and criminally stupid behavior. And these kids are dead and it was just another sentence or two in the newspaper and military spokesperson Lt. Col. Steve Boylan wonders whether they will hold any more such events. Not even an apology for this ignorance.

This belongs in Apocalypse Now or the Eternal City depravity in Catch-22.

Shame on us. Shame.

Hey, I have an idea. Lets not blame the a**holes that blew up those kids. Sarcasam Off

The terrorism is evil. They are the murderers here.

The stupidity of the Americans in charge morally reprehensible.

they povided the opportnity for these kids to be killed.

Is that so hardto understand?

Using that logic, maybe the parents of the children should be held to the same standards you hold the soldiers to, after all, they let their kids go out into the streets. Is that not providing an oppourtunity to be killed, also, especially in an occupied country that suffers violence on a daily basis?

Originally posted by dannia
Using that logic, maybe the parents of the children should be held to the same standards you hold the soldiers to, after all, they let their kids go out into the streets. Is that not providing an oppourtunity to be killed, also, especially in an occupied country that suffers violence on a daily basis?

Ditto

I think the conspiracy here is that US soldiers are luring kids with candy to use them as human shields, either to protect themselves physically or to deter terrorists from targeting them. The second one probably wouldn't work in many instances, but who knows about the first.

[edit on 4-10-2004 by Jamuhn]

Let me get this straight. Some well meaning American Soldiers called some kid's over to give them a treat. Then, an insane radical Muslim extremist drove by and blew them up with a car bomb and that makes it the soldiers fault! In that case IT'S YOUR FAULT that I'm broke tonight! You could have sent me all your paychecks, but you chose not to! Shame on you!

Well, my understanding of the situation is Americans are getting shot at, regularly.

Excuse me, where's the logic in drawing kids TOWARDS people expected to be shot at?

DE

Originally posted by Teiresias
The stupidity of the Americans in charge morally reprehensible.
they povided the opportnity for these kids to be killed.

Dude you sooooo need to get a grip here. The children were there already. Giving them candy is hardly "morally reprehensible". Nor did they provide the oppurtunity. As I pointed out, those kids were already there. The only thing that is repugnant besides your attempting to place the blame on the US Army is the fact that the Iraqi insurgents targeted thier own children.

Perfect example of "no good deed goes unpunished.

Here's an example of why these kids flock to our soldiers:

Staff Sgt. Mike McKee, 42, of Gaston empties his backpack for the crowd that swarms around him. He has grown fond of a particular Iraqi girl who reminds him of one of his own seven children, 6-year-old Abigaile.

He finds the girl's mother and asks where the child is. She is visiting friends in the country, so he drops off a pair of specially prepared bags for her. They contain stickers, toothpaste, a T-shirt, notebooks and other items. McKee says he's sure her mother will give them to her.

The vast majority of soldiers serving in Iraq would never knowingly hurt a civilian, let alone a child.

and

"Mistah! Mistah!" shout a group of children as soon as the guardsmen are spotted Friday. The children approach with their hands out, pleading for bits of candy, notebooks, pencils and T-shirts.

The insurgents have made it perfectly clear that they don't care who they blow up, soldiers, civilians and kids. Put the blame where it belongs on the insurgents.

Link

Originally posted by DeusEx
Well, my understanding of the situation is Americans are getting shot at, regularly.

Excuse me, where's the logic in drawing kids TOWARDS people expected to be shot at?

DE

With regard to drawing kids toward people expected to be shot at:
If you think of it that way, then the kids shouldn't have been there at all, and the fault lies on the parents for bringing them there or allowing them to go there, and not the soldiers who were offering sweets. As FredT said, the children were already there.
Everytime a child goes out the door they're going out into the streets where people are being shot at, bombs are going off, on a daily basis.

Don't ask the soldiers why they're calling the kids to them when they know they are targets, don't ask the parents why they take their children out, or allow them to go out. It's not the parents' fault, it's the insurgents fault for not caring who they kill. For not respecting human life, for not respecting and cherishing the innocent life of a child. It's not the soldiers' fault; all they were doing was trying to brighten the days of young Iraqi's and you can bet that if any of the soldiers who called the children over to them are still alive, they are feeling the guilt of their actions, even though it is not their fault that insurgents chose to set off car bombs not caring who they killed

I think that portraying this event as the soldiers fault for drawing the kids into the area for whatever reason, is ludicrous. Give them a bit more damn credit. These kids flock to explosions, it is the highlight of their week to see such a thing, to pick through the debri and interact with the soldiers.

This is just an unfortunate incident. Nothing more should be made of it.

Anywhere in the world that american soldiers have ever been stationed they have showed respect, kindness, and friendliness, towards civillians, especally children. From WW2 to vietnam, to the current situation in Iraq. American soldiers in every combat zone have gone out of there way to try and make the lives of those innocents caught up in affairs they have no control over a little bit brighter. They don't do it because they want human shields or because they are monsters, they do it because its the American way to treasure, dote on, and protect children, no matter the nationality, race, or religon.
The men and women who are serving in Iraq, despte being under constant threat of enemy fire, bombings, and mortar attacks, do as much as they can, on personal level to make the land they are in better. To say that these soldiers, who, despite being under conditions most of us on ths board could neither fathom nor endure, still try to improve the lives of those they are sworn to protect, are guilty for the depraved and reprehensible actions of thse to life is worthless is not only stupid but insane.
The only guilty prties in this incident are those who built, transported, and detonated the bomb. To say otherwise is to show yourself to be so divorced from reality as to need serious psychological treatment.

There are many people responsible for this situation, but I do think that we can blame the soldiers. Do you think they called the children because the soldiers were afraid of being attacked and the children would protect them?

Soldiers are common people, but trained to deal with combat situations. When they have reasons to believe that there is no danger of a combat situation they behave as normal people.

Sadly, there are other people that do not care who they kill, even if they are children (this makes me think that they are not from that region, or they are completely crazy), to reach their goals.

This is a different example of why kids should not accept candy from strangers, maybe there is someone who does not like that fact and could kill the stranger and the kids.

BAGHDAD, Iraq -- A string of bombs killed 35 children and wounded scores of others as U.S. troops handed out candy Thursday at a government-sponsored celebration to inaugurate a sewage plant. It was the largest death toll of children in any insurgent attack since the start of the Iraq conflict.

-- idsnews.com
-- japantoday.com
-- scotsman.com
-- ohio.com
-- messenger-inquirer.com
-- kcchronicle.com
-- foxnews.com



Since when you give out candy to children, when its a government celebration to inaugurate a *sewage* plant! what to celebrate about? a plant for a sewage! and to do this you go by gathering children!





Early reports said a U.S. convoy was passing by the celebration when the attack occurred. The U.S. military said later that American soldiers were taking part in the celebration but that no convoy was passing through the area.

-- idsnews.com
-- japantoday.com
-- scotsman.com
-- ohio.com
-- messenger-inquirer.com
-- kcchronicle.com
-- foxnews.com



Did it pass or not, seems to me someone is lying here. they said they were taking part in the celebration in the same time only 1 casualty from their side . . .





Some of the children, who are near the end of a nationwide school vacation, said they were attracted to the neighborhood celebration by American soldiers handing out candy.

"The Americans called us. They told us: 'Come here, come here,' asking us if we wanted sweets. We went beside them, then a car exploded," said 12-year-old Abdel Rahman Dawoud, lying naked in a hospital bed with shrapnel embedded all over his body.

-- idsnews.com
-- japantoday.com
-- scotsman.com
-- ohio.com
-- messenger-inquirer.com
-- kcchronicle.com
-- foxnews.com







Residents said that before the start of the celebration, U.S. soldiers called upon the children through loudspeakers to join the crowd, promising them sweets. There were an unusually large number around because the long school holidays were nearing an end

-- commondreams.org



The children were lured, even through loudspeakers to take part of this bloody celebration!! but what to expect they didn't care for them when they were bombing them from above. . .





"I blame the Americans for this tragedy. They wanted to make human shields out of our children. They should have kept the children away from danger," said Abdel-Hadi al-Badri, a cleric a the al-Mubashroun al-Ashra mosque, breaking down in tears during Friday prayers.

Al-Badri's son lost his right leg in the explosion after he ignored his father's warnings to stay away from the U.S. troops.

"The Americans are the first terrorists and the people who carried out the attack are the second terrorists," he added. It was the largest number of children killed in any single insurgent attack since the conflict erupted 17 months ago.

Al-Badri's is a common lament here. Confronted by daily bombings, kidnappings, deadly crossfires and soaring violent crime, many Iraqis blame most of their ills on the Americans. Many say that they and their children would not be dying today had the U.S. not invaded their country 17 months ago.

About 100 yards from the site of two of the three explosions, a large red and yellow tent was filled with mourners for two sisters, Raghad Dharar, 12, and Meisoun Dharar,10, who were killed as they returned from a nearby market.

"The day before yesterday, I bought them new school dresses and I was planning to buy them shoes. I did not know that they were not going ever to attend again," the father said.

Dharar Ahmed, a policeman, said that there was no reason to stage a large celebration for a small sewage plant that was already partially operating.

"The Americans were attracting the children by offering sweets. They should not have done this," he said amid the sounds of wailing women.

-- commondreams.org



ditto.

[edit on 5-10-2004 by fanoose]

Fanoose in a country where clean water is in short supply the opening of a sewage treatment plant is a huge reason to celebrate.

See we are only hearing part of the story. From halfway around the world NO-ONE can make accurate judgement of the incident. If the area was "secured" but the bombers still managed to get through, then the soldiers have no blame. However if the area was unsecured then yes, it MIGHT be the soldiers fault, ASSUMING they knew they would likely be attacked, or that they threw away their morals for a moment and decided to use kids for a bit of instant armour. Or it could be both parties faults. One for blowing the kids up, the other for loosing common sense and enticing the kids into a nice group ready for exploding.

Opening a sewage plant would be a big deal over there thus a prime target for terrorists, so I'm assuming it would have been secured to some extent (obviously not enough though), thus going on my assumption the soldiers hold no blame. They should be encouraged for being friendly and trying to do something to put a smile on the kids faces...imagine what a treat it would be for a child living over there to get lollies

Originally posted by mwm1331
Fanoose in a country where clean water is in short supply the opening of a sewage treatment plant is a huge reason to celebrate.



"Dharar Ahmed, a policeman, said that there was no reason to stage a large celebration for a small sewage plant that was already partially operating".
-- commondreams.org


And to celebrate this you lure children through loudspeakers !

Originally posted by fanoose

Originally posted by mwm1331
Fanoose in a country where clean water is in short supply the opening of a sewage treatment plant is a huge reason to celebrate.



"Dharar Ahmed, a policeman, said that there was no reason to stage a large celebration for a small sewage plant that was already partially operating".
-- commondreams.org


And to celebrate this you lure children through loudspeakers !

That looks like a political option, using something already working to be inaugurated, does anybody know of the presence of any politicians, that would be a good way to see if those who organized the celebration would expect problems or not.