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Video Shows Iraqi Firing at Cargo Plane
A homemade videotape given to a French journalist showed a man firing a surface-to-air missile at a DHL cargo plane, moments after a U.S. helicopter flew overhead â apparently without noticing him. The tape appeared to record the insurgent operation Saturday in which a missile struck the wing of a DHL cargo plane, forcing the aircraft to make an emergency landing at Baghdadâs airport. It was the first time insurgents struck a civilian plane in Iraq. The U.S. military said there were no injuries to the three-member crew. No statement accompanied the tape, which was given to Sara Daniel, a journalist with the Paris-based magazine Le Nouvel Observateur. Given or shot by one of their stringers? The magazineâs next edition comes out Thursday; Daniel distributed the videotape to other news organizations. Officials at the Pentagon said they had not seen the video and could not comment on it. Memo to Pentagon, turn on CNN/Fox. The videotape showed about a dozen men standing in an open field, several of them wearing checkered headscarves over their faces. A Black Hawk helicopter flew nearby at an altitude of about 350 feet, but appeared not to spot the men. Three cars were parked nearby. One of the men raised a shoulder-fired missile, whose type could not be determined. The gunner aimed and launched the missile at an unseen target. Trailing white smoke, the missile initially climbed almost vertically, then executed a sharp right turn as it gathered speed. Aquired itâs target. The tape continued to roll, but showed the men scrambling to their cars. "Run away!" After a time, the camera was again pointed to the sky as the stricken airliner, trailing flames and smoke, descended toward the airport. No impact is shown. I think we need to start showing our own videos; "Thunder Over Tikrit", "Sunni Showdown", and "Death to Jihadiâs". Posted by: Steve 2003-11-25 |
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