From: Nigel Hay MILWEB (nigel@milweb.net)
Date: Tue Sep 20 2005 - 01:40:53 PDT
Ok so its wasnt "accidental" that tanks knocked the walls down.......
British Tanks Storm Basra Jail To Free Undercover Soldiers
Tuesday, September 20, 2005
British troops used tanks last night to break down the walls of a prison in
the southern Iraqi city of Basra and free two undercover British soldiers
who were seized earlier in the day by local police.
An official from the Iraqi interior ministry said half a dozen tanks had
broken down the walls of the jail and troops had then stormed it to free the
two British soldiers. The governor of Basra last night condemned the
"barbaric aggression" of British forces in storming the jail.
Aquil Jabbar, an Iraqi television cameraman who lives across the street from
the jail, said dozens of Iraqi prisoners also fled in the confusion.
In a statement last night the defence secretary, John Reid, said: "I am
pleased to be able to say that the British servicemen who were seen being
injured in the graphic photographs are being treated for minor injuries only
and are expected to return to duty shortly. We remain committed to helping
the Iraqi government for as long as they judge that a coalition presence is
necessary to provide security."
A Ministry of Defence spokesman said: "We have not had confirmation of the
full details of this. We've heard nothing to suggest we stormed the prison.
We understand there were negotiations."
In a day of dramatic incidents in the heart of the British-controlled area
of Iraq, the two undercover soldiers - almost certainly special forces -
were held by Iraqi security forces after clashes that reportedly left two
people dead and threatened to escalate into a diplomatic incident between
London and Baghdad.
The soldiers, who were said to have been wearing Arab headdress, were
accused of firing at Iraqi police when stopped at a road block.
In another incident an angry crowd attacked a Warrior armoured personnel
carrier with petrol bombs. A British soldier was forced to flee from his
burning vehicle.
Muhammad al-Abadi, an official in the Basra governorate, told journalists
the two undercover soldiers had looked suspicious to police. "A policeman
approached them and then one of these guys fired at him. Then the police
managed to capture them."
Senior British officials said the Iraqis who attacked the Warrior armoured
vehicle had prepared their petrol bomb attack before the incident involving
the two undercover soldiers. The origins of the attack on the Warrior, they
say, lay in events the previous day when about 200 members of the al-Mahdi
Army, a militia headed by the radical Shia cleric Moqtada al-Sadr, made a
show of force in Basra, blocking roads in the city and demanding the release
of their local commanders.
-----Original Message-----
From: Military Vehicles Mailing List [mailto:mil-veh@mil-veh.org]On
Behalf Of Nigel Hay MILWEB
Sent: 20 September 2005 09:55
To: Military Vehicles Mailing List
Subject: [MV] Breaking news
Simon Weissenthal the Nazi hunter has just died it has just been announced.
Curiously last night clips from the film Wiesenthal were being shown in one
of those endless programs lauding various actors.
Other breaking news is that the statement tracked Warrior didnt ram the wall
of the jail to rescue the SAS troops held by the Iraqis, the wall was
knocked down "accidentally" -
However what the horrific news footage( of the mob petrol bombing the tanks
and crew men trying to escape whislt ablaze) yesterday did show of the
blazing Warriors was that petrol bombs could disable such a tank. Such a
weakness is suprising but I guess unless its fully sealed for a chemical
attack, petrol could secrete through hatch seals, the turret ring etc.
Scary and a new dimension.
NH
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