You Have to Wonder: Reports Tell Us We Should Believe Militants Were Among the Dead After US Attack
Moss David Posner M.D.
January 19, 2006
You have to wonder....
Yesterday, there was a report of a strike on a village in Afghanistan, near the Pakistani border. Some 18 family members were killed. All of the neighbors denied knowing anything about insurgents in their midst, and our government countered feebly that they thought there might have been. Even the usually even-tempered and rational Sen. McCain went so far as to say , in effedt, that even if there were no insurgents (whatever that term is supposed to mean--Iraqis, I guess) he "would do it again," were it up to him.
Today, we are informed that we should believe that there were militants among the dead, even if there was no evidence of same.
Huh?
No folks, I couldn't have made that up, I just couldn't have. Read on, and read carefully:
"ISLAMABAD, Pakistan - A Pakistani security official on Thursday said at least three top al-Qaida operatives were believed killed in a U.S. missile strike last week, including an explosives expert on the U.S. most-wanted list and a close relative of the terror network's No. 2 leader Ayman al-Zawahri.
A security official, speaking on condition of anonymity because he's not authorized to speak to media, said Egyptian Midhat Mursi was among the three top al-Qaida figures who were present in Damadola village at the time of the attack and whose bodies were believed to have been taken away by sympathizers."
"_Believed_" to have been taken away?
This grotesque demonstration of shallow and disgraceful propaganda is laced with the following phrases:
"The site says Mursi's exact whereabouts are unknown but adds that he may be residing in Pakistan...."
"The Pakistani official named two other foreign militants as suspected killed in the missile strike:...."
"(The Pakistani official)...stressed that their bodies have not been found."
""We do not have any evidence to prove that they have been killed, but we have indications that they were there and were among those bodies that were taken away," the official said, declining to elaborate."
"A second Pakistani security official confirmed that security agencies were investigating the three men as possible victims of the air strike...."
"Officials say the attack also killed 18 local residents." (Leave out the "also" and you have the truth.)
"Pentagon officials said they had no information on the reported identities of the dead and CIA spokesman Tom Crispell said the agency could not comment."
This is my favorite:
"al-Zawahri's son-in-law was believed killed in the strike, but provided a different identity."
I'm reminded of the description in "Tom Sawyer" by Mark Twain--of Tom and Huck sitting in the church balcony, weeping at their own funeral.
I just love this one:
"Pakistani officials previously said that at least four foreign militants were killed in the attack, but Pakistani Interior Minister Aftab Sherpao told The Associated Press the government had not retrieved their bodies."
That very same Mark Twain, on hearing that he was believed to be dead once wryly commented, "the recent reports of my passing are greatly exaggerated."
"He said the bodies may have been taken by a local pro-Taliban cleric...."
"'We are still investigating. There's a possibility that some foreigners were there, but we still do not know.'"
"Residents said then that all the dead were local people and no one had taken any bodies away. However, it appeared feasible that bodies or wounded could have been spirited away in the darkness after the attack, which took place at about 3 a.m."
On the other hand, perhaps they "spirited" themselves away the night before--or perhaps they were only there in spirit.
However, you will be relieved to hear that the article does conclude with some statements of fact:
"Pakistan maintains it was not given advance word of the airstrike, which was reportedly carried out by unmanned Predator drones flying from Afghanistan, and has condemned it as killing innocent civilians.
Thousands have taken to the streets in protest over the attack, denouncing the U.S. and Pakistani President Gen. Pervez Musharraf, who ended Pakistan's support of the Taliban regime in late 2001 and has himself been targeted by al-Qaida attacks."
This---is "news?"
Yesterday, there was a report of a strike on a village in Afghanistan, near the Pakistani border. Some 18 family members were killed. All of the neighbors denied knowing anything about insurgents in their midst, and our government countered feebly that they thought there might have been. Even the usually even-tempered and rational Sen. McCain went so far as to say , in effedt, that even if there were no insurgents (whatever that term is supposed to mean--Iraqis, I guess) he "would do it again," were it up to him.
Today, we are informed that we should believe that there were militants among the dead, even if there was no evidence of same.
Huh?
No folks, I couldn't have made that up, I just couldn't have. Read on, and read carefully:
"ISLAMABAD, Pakistan - A Pakistani security official on Thursday said at least three top al-Qaida operatives were believed killed in a U.S. missile strike last week, including an explosives expert on the U.S. most-wanted list and a close relative of the terror network's No. 2 leader Ayman al-Zawahri.
A security official, speaking on condition of anonymity because he's not authorized to speak to media, said Egyptian Midhat Mursi was among the three top al-Qaida figures who were present in Damadola village at the time of the attack and whose bodies were believed to have been taken away by sympathizers."
"_Believed_" to have been taken away?
This grotesque demonstration of shallow and disgraceful propaganda is laced with the following phrases:
"The site says Mursi's exact whereabouts are unknown but adds that he may be residing in Pakistan...."
"The Pakistani official named two other foreign militants as suspected killed in the missile strike:...."
"(The Pakistani official)...stressed that their bodies have not been found."
""We do not have any evidence to prove that they have been killed, but we have indications that they were there and were among those bodies that were taken away," the official said, declining to elaborate."
"A second Pakistani security official confirmed that security agencies were investigating the three men as possible victims of the air strike...."
"Officials say the attack also killed 18 local residents." (Leave out the "also" and you have the truth.)
"Pentagon officials said they had no information on the reported identities of the dead and CIA spokesman Tom Crispell said the agency could not comment."
This is my favorite:
"al-Zawahri's son-in-law was believed killed in the strike, but provided a different identity."
I'm reminded of the description in "Tom Sawyer" by Mark Twain--of Tom and Huck sitting in the church balcony, weeping at their own funeral.
I just love this one:
"Pakistani officials previously said that at least four foreign militants were killed in the attack, but Pakistani Interior Minister Aftab Sherpao told The Associated Press the government had not retrieved their bodies."
That very same Mark Twain, on hearing that he was believed to be dead once wryly commented, "the recent reports of my passing are greatly exaggerated."
"He said the bodies may have been taken by a local pro-Taliban cleric...."
"'We are still investigating. There's a possibility that some foreigners were there, but we still do not know.'"
"Residents said then that all the dead were local people and no one had taken any bodies away. However, it appeared feasible that bodies or wounded could have been spirited away in the darkness after the attack, which took place at about 3 a.m."
On the other hand, perhaps they "spirited" themselves away the night before--or perhaps they were only there in spirit.
However, you will be relieved to hear that the article does conclude with some statements of fact:
"Pakistan maintains it was not given advance word of the airstrike, which was reportedly carried out by unmanned Predator drones flying from Afghanistan, and has condemned it as killing innocent civilians.
Thousands have taken to the streets in protest over the attack, denouncing the U.S. and Pakistani President Gen. Pervez Musharraf, who ended Pakistan's support of the Taliban regime in late 2001 and has himself been targeted by al-Qaida attacks."
This---is "news?"
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