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| Iraq |
| Arab TV: U.S. pilot captured |
| 2003-03-23 |
| A Lebanese satellite channel, LBC TV reports from Baghdad that an American pilot was captured in Baghdad, Sunday. The station showed images of dozens of Iraqis rushing to a bridge overlooking the Tigris river to capture a pilot whose plane was shot down. The bridge is close to the neighborhood of Sanaka leading to the information ministry. LBC is saying a U.S. pilot was captured. I was watching this on FoxNews this morning. They were shooting at the water — typical fire-from-the-hip stuff, which is why they so seldom hit anything. Then they set fire to some reeds. I didn't see anyone captured... The event took place at the time Baghdad was being bombarded and the bridge was crowded with cars and people. Big clouds of black smoke was also seen billowing over Baghdad. Al Jazeera quoted witnesses as saying two western pilots were seen coming down in parachutes over Baghdad, and military men were seen searching for them in boats on the river. Soldiers with machineguns are screening the shores of the river. Hundreds of civilians and military men were involved in the search. |
| Posted by:Fred Pruitt |
| #5 I would love to get my hands on that guy in the Iraqi footage (without the helmet) with the AK firing into the reeds. Hook his arms up to 2 M1A1s via chains, and slowly pull him apart. Slowly. |
| Posted by: RW 2003-03-23 20:39:29 |
| #4 One grudgingly has to hand it to them as a propaganda effort. We ought to drop a dummy plane in the area with a mannequin pilot with parachute. Let them send in the troops, get it rolling on TV, then boom-wha. |
| Posted by: Alaska Paul 2003-03-23 12:18:43 |
| #3 Looked like the first semi-annual Tigris Fish Shoot to me. What a bunch of clowns! Pure propaganda at its amateurish best. |
| Posted by: Dar Steckelberg 2003-03-23 10:46:22 |
| #2 The film of these idiots almost burning themselves up trying to ignite the brush is well worth the price of admission....reminds me of that Paki ahole burning himself while lighting up a U.S. flag. The eye-rolling and spittle must disconnect their self-preservation cortex impulses LOL |
| Posted by: Frank G 2003-03-23 09:44:58 |
| #1 According to the BBC: "An official at the Command Centre in Qatar says that what the Iraqis saw were probably air-launched anti-radar missiles, which can loiter above their targets by deploying parachutes. The missiles delay their fall to ground when defenders switch off their radar facilities and resume their fall once these facilities are turned back on [sic?]. The initial reports led to a great deal of activity along the river bank as crowds watched the search. Their efforts to find any coalition pilots were broadcast by al-Jazeera TV." NB Al Jazeera's a spin-off of the BBC. Originally it was in in-house Arab News channel but was axed during a budget cut, and, I think, after pressure from certain arab governments. In gratitude, it now doesn't even offer an English-language website. |
| Posted by: Bulldog 2003-03-23 13:25:51 |