[17] Julian Assange said "permission to engage was given before the word 'RPG' was ever used". [25] Both videos depict the attack on the van, van driver, and two other men, and the aftermath when the two seriously injured children were evacuated by U.S. ground forces who arrived on the scene. Josh Stieber was in the same company but was not there that day, though he contributed to the your pain, and the pain of your community on many other occasions. When we were on that roof, we were still taking fire. As the pilot positions the helicopter to attack the building, two unarmed men walk towards, and perhaps into, the building. It was nominated as a Documentary Short Subject for the 84th Academy Awards. He said that the debate should be re-framed, that it is more appropriate to ask "questions of the larger system" that teaches "doing these things is in the best interests of my own country". One second later he screams, "He's got an RPG!" And I picked him up and started running with him over to the Bradley. On April 5, 2010, the attacks received worldwide coverage and controversy following the release of 39 minutes of gunsight footage by the Internet whistleblower website WikiLeaks. This is urban combat and we're taking the war to children and women and innocents. New details reveal that Beijing-backed hackers targeted the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, adding to a string of attacks in the region. In the video, you can clearly see that they did have weapons to the trained eye." When they arrived, they found a scene of fresh carnage the scattered remains of a group of men, believed to be armed, who had just been gunned down by Apache attack helicopters. McCord: Yeah. On the video, it is then seen that Army soldiers establish a perimeter around the site and extract the children from the burning van. We were probably there on the roof for another four to five hours. It's painful to see, especially when you learn after the fact what was going on. For instance, the Web site takes special care to slow down the video and identify the two photographers and the cameras they are carrying. The men become obscured behind a building as the Apache moves around the group. "These people can put out anything they want, and they're never held accountable for it. It was a scene that had played repeatedly in his mind the last three [], All the Settings You Should Change on Your New Samsung Phone, Its Time to Fall in Love With Nuclear FusionAgain, Give Your Back a Break With Our Favorite Office Chairs, Fat, Sugar, Salt Youve Been Thinking About Food All Wrong, Apple Users Need to Update iOS Now to Patch Serious Flaws. McCord was captured in a video shot from one helicopter as he ran frantically to a military vehicle with Sajad in his arms seeking medical care. (quote begins at 5:15)", "Soldiers in 'Collateral Murder' video apologise", "Meet The New Public Face Of WikiLeaks: Kristinn Hrafnsson Forbes", "2 Iraqi Journalists Killed as U.S. I had blood all down the front of me from the children. From our own experiences, and the experiences of other veterans we have talked to, we know that the acts depicted in this video are everyday occurrences of this war: this is the nature of how U.S.-led wars are carried out in this region. [43], Assange responded to the investigation report released by the Army in an interview with Democracy Now!, stating that "the tone and language is all about trying to find an excuse for the activity. Josh . And where the soldier said [in the video], "Well, you shouldn't take your kids to battle." [59], An internal legal review by staff at Forward Operating Base Loyalty in Iraq during July 2007 stated that the helicopters had attacked a number of armed insurgents within the rules of engagement, and that in an apparent case of civilian casualties two reporters working for Reuters had also been killed. On July 12, 2007, a series of air-to-ground attacks were conducted by a team of two U.S. AH-64 Apache helicopters in Al-Amin al-Thaniyah, New Baghdad, during the Iraqi insurgency which followed the invasion of Iraq. The company was charged with clearing their sector of any small armed forces, and had been under fire from small arms and rocket-propelled grenades (RPGs). The crew then reposition the helicopter and fire two more missiles into the upper floors of the building[44], WikiLeaks said in the preface to one of their videos of the incident that "some of the men appear to have been armed [although] the behavior of nearly everyone was relaxed" in the introductory text of the shorter video. Our heavy hearts still hold hope that we can restore inside our country the acknowledgment of your humanity, that we were taught to deny. As the ground troops advanced, a wounded Chmagh was seen crawling and attempting to stand. [68], Stephen Colbert, in an interview with Assange in April 2010, asked him about the title: "You have edited this tape, and you have given it a title called 'Collateral Murder'. I've spoken with other soldiers who were there. The editors asked to see the remaining footage so Reuters could check whether it had been edited or manipulated. When Bravo Company arrived at the scene, they reported finding two RPGs and an AK-47 or AKM. [92][93] The Internet chats between Manning and Lamo were revealed to the public by Wired. [19], As the tape resumes, two men, one holding an AK-47, are seen walking. You can hear the medic saying on the video, "There's nothing I can do here, she needs to be evac'd." [17], In an interview with Fox News Assange said that "it's likely some of the individuals seen in the video were carrying weapons" and "based upon visual evidence I suspect there probably were AKs and an RPG, but I'm not sure that means anything. Nearly every Iraqi household has a rifle or an AK. Give us a picture of what happened that day. I was diagnosed with chronic, severe PTSD. McCord, who served seven years in the military before leaving in the summer of 2009 due to injuries, recently posted an apologetic letter online with fellow soldier Josh Steiber supporting the release of the video and asking the family's forgiveness. [42] According to the internal legal review, the helicopters engaged a group of armed insurgents, and that some were seen entering a nearby building. For about 5 to 10 minutes the team diverted its attention to this vehicle. [61], Washington Post reporter David Finkel, who at the time was embedded with Bravo Company 216 Infantry, later covered the incidents of the day in his book, The Good Soldiers. [32] The legal review carried out by the U.S. Army stated that the two children were evacuated to the 28th Combat Support Hospital via Forward Operating Base Loyalty, then transferred to an Iraqi medical facility the next day. The promise we make to our sources is that not only will we defend them through every means that we have available technologically, legally and politically but we will try and get the maximum possible political impact for the material that they give to us. "Reading his account," she explained, "one would believe the engagement was somehow justified as 'payback' for an earlier attack that led to the death of a soldier. That classified video created its own firestorm when the whistleblower site Wikileaks posted it April 5 on a website titled "Collateral Murder" and asserted that the attack was unprovoked. "[76], Captain Jack Hanzlik, a spokesman for U.S. Central Command stated that the airstrike video "gives you a limited perspective, [it] only tells you a portion of the activity that was happening that day. McCord, together with another former member of the company, Josh Stieber, have addressed an open "Letter of Reconciliation" to the Iraqi people taking responsibility for their role in this. And cracking jokes is a way of pushing that stuff down. Series of air-to-ground attacks conducted in New Baghdad during the Iraqi insurgency, An AH-64 Apache helicopter, the type used in the attack, Arrest, convictions and sentencing of Manning, Attack on personnel and a van per U.S. Army report account, Attack on building per U.S. Army report account, Julian Assange's comments regarding U.S. Army report, List of coalition military operations of the Iraq War 2007, "In Disclosing Secret Documents, WikiLeaks Seeks 'Transparency', "Video Shows U.S. Though we have acted with cold hearts far too many times, we have not forgotten our actions towards you. Ethan and Josh claim that though their unit was following the Rules of Engagement that day, they are taking responsibility for their role in the incident and initiating a dialogue around it; "Though we have acted with cold hearts far too many times, we have not forgotten our actions towards you. [62] At a February 2013 pretrial hearing, Manning stated that Finkel "was quoting, I feel in verbatim, the audio communications of the aerial weapons team crew". McCord: When it was first released I don't think it was done in the best manner that it could have been. They're smoking you, they're making you tired. [21], The Air Weapons Team (AWT) of two Apache AH-64s from the 1st Cavalry Division had been requested by the 2nd Battalion, 16th Infantry Regiment (216), 4th Brigade Combat Team, 1st Infantry Division under the command of Lieutenant Colonel Ralph Kauzlarich, before July 12 to support Operation Ilaaj. "The first thing I thought of was my children at home". We did unto you what we would not want done to us. The story was then overtaken by a more updated one out of Washington that incorporated reporting from the original piece. Iraq war veteran Ethan McCord was one of three US soldiers who were on the ground during the Apache helicopter assault on twelve civilians in Baghdad in 2007 that was captured in a video. A school district is mourning the loss of a 13-year-old student who was found dead along with 3 other family members after a "potential murder-suicide" in Clermont County.It happened around 9:41 a . I did see a video on YouTube after the Wikileaks [ video ] came out, of the children being interviewed. I have a huge place in my heart for children, having some of my own. So I just sucked it up and tried to move on with everything. More and more Americans are taking responsibility for what was done in our name. [18][25][31] The Apache crew requested permission to engage, stating it "looks like [the men] possibly, picking up bodies and weapons" from the scene,[33] and repeated their request to shoot,[7][34][35][36][37] before they received permission to begin firing on the van and its occupants. Their age, their weapons, and the fact that they were within the distance of the forces that had been engaged made it apparent these guys were potentially a threat. [59][16] In a personal statement during her court-martial, Chelsea Manning stated that the military had access to the video, and was actively examining it, yet it told Reuters in response to the FOIA request that the information might no longer exist. There's no easy way to kill somebody. [88], McCord requested mental health assistance following his experiences on July 12, but was told by his superior officers to "get the sand out of [his] vagina" and to "suck it up and be a soldier". Colbert asked "So 'Collateral Murder' is to get political impact?" Their overall mission that day was to protect us, to provide support for us, so I can see where the initial attack on the group of men was warranted. I can accept their apology, because they saved my children, and if it were not for them, maybe my two little children would be dead. The film received an Oscar nomination in January. We are both soldiers who occupied your neighborhood for 14 months. The girl suffered from a stomach wound and glass in her eyes, and the boy a head injury. [39][40] Just as the van was destroyed, U.S. ground troops made their final turn and arrived on the road with the van. Seven men were killed, including Noor-Eldeen and Chmagh, with three others being wounded. He responded, "I hadn't heard of WikiLeaks before yesterday. They heard about something, they came to it and they just wantedfrom everything I've learned since, they were just there to get that side of the story. Soldier on 2007 Apache Attack: What I Saw", "Redacted internal US Army report: "Investigation into Civilian Casualties Resulting from an Engagement on 12 July 2007 in the New Baghdad District of Baghdad", "WikiLeaks releases video of slaughter in Iraq", "Military shooting of Reuters men online", "Joan Smith: Now we see what war does to those who wage it", "US soldier on Baghdad airstrike: "Not out of the ordinary in Iraq", "2 soldiers in 'Collateral Murder' video apologize. We believe this constitutes a fair use of any such copyrighted material as provided for in 17 U.S.C 107. The video doesn't show the broader picture of the firing that was going on at American troops. Josh Stieber was in the same company but was not there that day, though he contributed to the your pain, and the pain of your community on many other occasions. [56] U.S. forces spokesman Lieutenant Colonel Scott Bleichwehl later stated: "There is no question that coalition forces were clearly engaged in combat operations against a hostile force". [103], On August 21, 2013, Manning was sentenced to 35 years' imprisonment, reduction in rank from private first class to private, forfeiture of all pay and allowances, and a dishonorable discharge. Ethan McCord: Right. [32] Assange also said "it's ludicrous to allege that we have taken anything out of context in this video". The Apache crew then alerted the ground troops that they believed that they could see an injured child moving around inside the destroyed van. It has also ignored many veterans who have returned physically injured or mentally troubled by what they saw and did in your country. McCord is the father of three children. I would like the American people and the whole world to understand what happened here in Iraq. After getting permission to fire, the Apache crew fired on the van. In 2009, Stieber left the military as a conscientious objector and became a member of Iraq Veterans Against the War. [2][22] Pentagon officials told the Reuters news agency that U.S. military lawyers were reviewing the video and could reopen an investigation into the incident,[67] but a spokesperson later said that there were no plans to reopen the investigation. After the video was released, one of the soldiers involved in the incident, Ethan McCord, stated the following: "If you feel threatened in any way, you're able to engage that person. Instead, the Apaches decided to completely obliterate everybody in the van. This is the problem that we're speaking out on as far as the rules of engagement. US Soldiers from Wikileaks Collateral Murder Video Apologize. In addition to five[98][99] or six[100][101][102] espionage counts, she was also found guilty of five theft specifications, two computer fraud specifications and multiple military infractions. That's why so many soldiers come back home and they're no longer in the situations where they have other things to think about or other people to joke about what happened and they explode. The review was not released in full until 2010, after the video of the incident had been released by WikiLeaks. "Our forces were engaged in combat all that day with individuals that fit the description of the men in that video. McCord added, "I don't say that Wikileaks did a bad thing, because they didn't. Towards the end of the show, the star actor became an active member of the Screen Actors Guild and after he left "Adam-12." Two men were identified by Crazyhorse 1/8 as carrying an RPG launcher and an AKM or AK-47. Ethan and Josh are available for interviews. Ethan Mccord and Josh Stieber deployed to Baghdad with Bravo Company 2-16 in 2007. 2023 Cond Nast. I know the van, I know the faces of everybody that was there that day. The film received an Oscar nomination in January. But this particular eventthis is clearly murder. This is why we called it Collateral Murder. It's very disturbing. Minutes after the first engagement ended, the van returned traveling in an opposite direction (north) once again on this same road. When the helicopter pilots discover that they have killed a number of Iraqi civilians and wounded two children, one of them is heard to say: "Well, its their fault for bringing their kids into a battle".[41]. I think that the bigger picture is what are we doing there? Among the group were two Iraqi war correspondents working for Reuters, Saeed Chmagh and Namir Noor-Eldeen. In refusing to recognize this, the US military fails both its own soldiers and their victims. [81], Publicity of the incident ballooned following the release of the footage. Part of Banksy's, This page was last edited on 20 February 2023, at 21:26. "[32][77] He said that WikiLeaks "does not point out that at least one man was carrying an AK-47 assault rifle. Reuters also stated that local police described the attack as "random American bombardment". Wired.com: At the time you arrived on the scene, you didn't know what had happened, is that right? [87], McCord discussed his experience in the battle in an interview with the World Socialist Web Site on April 28, 2010, stating, "What happened then was not an isolated incident. McCord: She had a stomach wound and she had glass in her eyes and in her hair. They're trained as soldiers to go into a building and clear a building. "The helicopters were approximately a mile and a half away and they were zooming in on these guys . McCord, in New York for the festival premiere, told the story of what he experienced while saving two children wounded in the incident. [58] Reuters subsequently asked the U.S. military to probe the deaths. [Then I] took my children to school one day and I came home and sat down on the couch and turned on the TV with my coffee, and on the news I'm running across the screen with a child. He looked at me, then his eyes rolled back into this head. ", "Hudson Institute > Warfare Through 'a Soda Straw', "Gates assails Internet group over attack video", "WikiLeaks releases video depicting US forces killing of two Reuters journalists in Iraq", "Leaked Video Depicts Civilian Deaths In Iraq", "Video shows death of 2 Reuters employees in Baghdad attack", "WaPo denies allegation it sat on WikiLeaks video", "Two members of the company in the WikiLeaks video speak out", "US soldier in WikiLeaks massacre video: 'I relive this every day', "Former US soldier speaks (interview transcript)", "US intelligence analyst arrested over security leaks", "U.S. Intelligence Analyst Arrested in WikiLeaks Video Probe", "Report: Soldier arrested for allegedly leaking 'Collateral Murder' helicopter video to WikiLeaks", "Bradley Manning pleads guilty to some Wikileaks charges", "Bradley Manning Found Guilty of 19 Counts, Not Guilty of Aiding The Enemy", "Bradley Manning Found Not Guilty of Aiding the Enemy", "Army Pfc. "I grabbed him and ran to the Bradley myself". [18] The report recommends encouraging journalists in Iraq to wear special vests to identify themselves, and to keep the U.S. military updated about their whereabouts. In fact, that's one of the reasons I went to the van immediately, because I could hear her crying. [104][105][106][107] Pursuant to a commutation by President Obama, Chelsea Manning was released on May 17, 2017. Highlighted in the 17-minute version of the video are Noor-Eldeen with a camera and Chmagh talking on his mobile phone. When the cameraman on the ground aimed his camera in the direction of Bravo Company 216, a pilot remarked "He's getting ready to fire". The Apache crew saw unarmed[25] men exit the vehicle and move to Chmagh. [22], In the video on the morning of July 12, 2007, the crews of two United States Army AH-64 Apache helicopters observe a gathering of men near a section of Baghdad in the path of advancing U.S. ground troops, some armed with AKMs and RPGs. [43] The report stated that the helicopter crew did not know how many people were in the building when they destroyed it with missiles, and that "there is evidence that unarmed people have both entered and are nearby". This is his account of what he saw. Assange responded: Yes, absolutely Our promise to the public is that we will release the full source material. The Web site does not slow down the video to show that at least one man in that group was carrying a rocket-propelled grenade launcher, a clearly visible weapon that runs nearly two-thirds the length of his body. [18][24][25][26][27] While the two are carrying media cards, a military officer claimed they were not wearing distinctive clothing identifying themselves as such. That's the hard part to swallow. It happened because my content was bad. . [61] The longer video shows the third attack, in which Hellfire missiles were fired into a building.[43]. Ethan McCord had just returned from dropping his children at school earlier this month, when he turned on the TV news to see grainy black-and-white video footage of a soldier running from a bombed-out van with a child in his arms. [50] In a later interview on the World Socialist Web Site, Stieber said that the attack "exposes so clearly the fallacy of using war as a tool of foreign policy or as a way to supposedly spread 'freedom and democracy' around the world".[51]. James W. McCord Jr., a security expert who led a band of burglars into the shambles of the Watergate scandal and was the first to expose the White House crimes and cover-ups that precipitated the . Our government may ignore you, concerned more with its public image. Lawmakers are increasingly hellbent on punishing the popular social network while efforts to pass a broader privacy law have dwindled. That's a violation of the laws of war and of course what the mainstream media have omitted from their stories is this context. I've had nightmares. The material on this site may not be reproduced, distributed, transmitted, cached or otherwise used, except with the prior written permission of Cond Nast. Ethan McCord pulled your daughter and son from the van, and when doing so, saw the faces of his own children back home. However, according to the co-pilot for Crazyhorse 1/8 they failed to positively identify the occupants as combatants and returned to the previous engagement area. But the video and accompanying audio make clear that the soldiers in the helicopter said they spotted 'weapons' among those in the grouplater identified by an internal army investigator as an AK-47 and an RPG. [18][25][31] Chmagh was killed[18][25][31] along with three other men, while two children, not known to be in the van to the U.S. forces, were injured. I don't think that [the] big picture is whether or not [the Iraqis who were killed] had weapons. The majority of us aren't. McCord's courage and integrity has nothing to do with his US army training. And then the father, who I'm assuming was the father, in the driver's seat slumped over on his side. WIRED may earn a portion of sales from products that are purchased through our site as part of our Affiliate Partnerships with retailers. You can see in this particular image he is lying on the ground and the people in the van have been separated, but they still deliberately target him. Personally, I believe the first attack on the group standing by the wall was appropriate, was warranted by the rules of engagement. [61] Speaking to Reuters on condition of anonymity, a U.S. Defense official confirmed the authenticity of the leaked audio and video. "[88] McCord also recalled being ordered to "kill every motherfucker on the street" in the event of an attack on their convoy. Lying dead on a street were inanimate objects that turned out to be. I'm going to help that person. However, the long version of the video shows that this van had already been targeted by one Apache (Crazyhorse 1/8), prior to the second strike, as it traveled south toward the Reuters employees who were simultaneously targeted by the other Apache (Crazyhorse 1/9) as they walked with the group of men north on the same road toward the van. If you wish to use copyrighted material from this site for purposes of your own that go beyond fair use, you must obtain permission from the copyright owner. BACKGROUND ON JOSH STIEBER: Branch of service: United States Army (USA) Unit: 1st ID Rank: Spc. To all of those who were injured or lost loved ones during the July 2007 Baghdad shootings depicted in the "Collateral Murder" Wikileaks video: We write to you, your family, and your community with awareness that our words and actions can never restore your losses. [19], Fox News said that of the attack "WikiLeaks appears to have done selective editing that tells only half the story. There had been a lot of RPG, grenade fire and so on, and they were doing what journalists do. [118][119], Coordinates: .mw-parser-output .geo-default,.mw-parser-output .geo-dms,.mw-parser-output .geo-dec{display:inline}.mw-parser-output .geo-nondefault,.mw-parser-output .geo-multi-punct{display:none}.mw-parser-output .longitude,.mw-parser-output .latitude{white-space:nowrap}331849N 443043E / 33.3137N 44.512E / 33.3137; 44.512 (Airstrike of 2007-07-12). The report concludes that the Reuters employees were in the company of armed insurgents. Captain James Hall stated they couldn't drive in Bradleys in fear of running over bodies. The crew for Crazyhorse 1/9 could not engage due to target obfuscation from buildings and dust. All rights reserved. [25] Glenn Greenwald of Salon.com said that "the vast majority of the men were clearly unarmed". After the incident, we went back to the FOB [forward operating base] and that's when I was in my room. [23] Among the group are two journalists working for Reuters, Namir Noor-Eldeen and Saeed Chmagh. Their request was denied at the briefing and they were told to seek access under the U.S. Freedom of Information Act.