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American troops lay siege to insurgent-held NE Iraqi city

Sep-10-2004 » Filed Under: 3/2 SBCT

An update from The Associated Press.

[Link to Full Article]
By Mariam Fam, Associated Press

BAGHDAD, Iraq (AP) U.S. troops handed over medical supplies to Iraqi relief workers Friday amid a siege of a northeastern ethnic Turkish city where Iraqi and American forces are trying to root out hundreds of militants.

Despite criticism from Turkey and Shiite leaders, U.S. commanders insisted they will the maintain their blockade of Tal Afar for as long as it takes to subdue what they said were foreign fighters holed up there. The campaign was part of a recently launched American effort to restore government authority to lawless areas of the country either through negotiation or by force.

''We are going to apply the necessary pressure to make sure that we are able to root out the enemy,'' said Lt. Col. Paul Hastings, spokesman for the Army's Task Force Olympia. ''How long it takes is really dependent on them.''

But the siege of Tal Afar, which the Americans describe as a hub for militants smuggling fighters and arms from Syria, was criticized from within and outside Iraq. [...]

Outside Tal Afar, American soldiers stopped and searched vehicles trying to enter the city, allowing entry to ambulances and other vehicles carrying medicine and food to residents.

A series of airstrikes on the city Thursday killed at least 67 insurgents, Hastings said. The provincial health director, Dr. Rabie Yassin, said 27 civilians were killed and 70 wounded.

The loss of civilian life is tragic under any circumstances. The clear implication in this article is that US force is soley responsible for the civilian casualties. However, earlier articles implicated the insurgents. Lots of gray here.

Did I word that right?


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