By Fatih Abdulsalam

July 7, 2006
Azzaman - Iraq- Original Article (English)    

Ahmed Qassim Hamza, 9, brother of the Iraqi
girl who was allegedly raped then killed, behind
his home in Mahmoudiya, July 6. His parents
and five-year-old sister were also killed. (above).

BBC NEWS VIDEO: Four U.S. soldiers charged
with rape, and a fifth charged with dereliction of
duty, for rape and murder of Iraqi girl,
July 9, 00:01:03
[LATEST NEWS PHOTOS: Iraq].

Steven D. Greena 21-year-old ex-Army private,
recently discharged due to a 'personality disorder,'
is one of 'up to' five soldiers being charge in the
rape and murder of a young Iraqi girl and the
killing of her parents and sister. (below).


---------------------------------------------------

The rape of 16-year-old Abeer by a group of American Marines, who had been watching her Mahmoudiya home [18 miles south of Baghdad], is just a microcosm of what has been going on in Iraq at the hands of U.S. occupation troops and Iraqi militias.

The U.S. military is investigating the crime, but the result even in the best of circumstances will be light punishment for one or two Marines, as was the case with the American criminals behind the Abu Ghraib abuses.

The Americans can claim that crimes perpetrated by the militias are a hundred times more numerous than those committed by their troops. This hypothesis might well be true, but who is responsible for the existence of these militias? Who is behind their prosperity and influence?

The answer is clear and points directly at the United States.

The rape of the Iraqi virgin had Iraqi politicians nodding their heads and playing with their tails as if they'd never heard of it. These officials and lawmakers spend all their time and energy scouring the books and countryside for excuses, allegations and fables to stoke the flames that have engulfed our nation.

The Iraqi virgin was raped in a premeditated, well-planned fashion. These are the initial findings of the U.S. investigation. The crime was not the result of a stray shell, bullet, or raid on suspected terrorist target.

This vicious and heinous crime is the latest insult since the criminal of occupation, devastation and implosion of a nation began, all based on false information.

VIDEO FROM SYRIA: 'AMERICANS CAN BE

OUR FRIENDS ... IF THEY LEAVE QUICKLY'

SYRIAN TV, SYRIA: Excerpts from an interview with Secretary-General of the Sunni Clerics Association in Iraq, Sheik Hareth Al-Dhari, June 24, 00:04:48, Via MEMRI

"The Iraqis are not hostile to the Americans or the American people. They were not hostile even to the American army before it entered Iraq. The Americans could become our friends, if they leave Iraq peacefully, according to a timetable."

Sheik Hareth Al-Dhari