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U.S., Canada trade blame for Iraq shooting incident
Foreign Affairs story casts doubt on U.S. claim of self-defence
Sheldon Alberts
The Ottawa Citizen
Thursday, February 02, 2006
WASHINGTON - Canadian and U.S. authorities traded charges yesterday over who was to blame after a U.S. military convoy opened fire on a car carrying four Canadian diplomats.
Even as the U.S. State Department expressed regret over the friendly fire incident, the Pentagon held to its original claim that the U.S. soldiers believed they were being threatened and acted in self-defence.
Sgt. Doug Anderson, a Pentagon spokesman, said the Canadian vehicle "attempted to pass a U.S. military convoy after ignoring signals to stop" on a road inside Baghdad's heavily fortified Green Zone. "The U.S. convoy defended itself by firing a three-round rifle burst," Sgt. Anderson said.
But officials with Canada's Foreign Affairs Department, and a Canadian diplomat who was travelling inside the car insisted yesterday the shots were fired without warning. They also maintain the car and the convoy were separated by several lanes of traffic and a concrete barrier.
"There are some disagreements about what has occurred. Our officials are clear that they are operating within the rules," prime minister-designate Stephen Harper said in Ottawa.
Gen. Rick Hillier, the chief of the defence staff, contacted U.S. officials yesterday to express his concerns about the shooting "and to make sure such events are avoided in the future," Mr. Harper said.
U.S. Defence Secretary Donald Rumsfeld told reporters in Washington he was aware of the incident, but declined to comment on the details while military investigators reviewed the shooting. "It's being investigated. I don't know anything more than what has been announced," Mr. Rumsfeld said. "I wasn't there. I obviously don't know."
The incident unfolded at about 1 p.m. Tuesday in Baghdad while the Canadian diplomats -- including Stewart Henderson, the charge d'affaires in Iraq -- were travelling from the British residence inside the Green Zone to their own accommodations.
According to the U.S. military, the soldiers signalled for the car to stop, but when the car kept coming, the rear-gunner in the convoy's last vehicle opened fire.
The Pentagon says soldiers are authorized to fire on vehicles if drivers fail to heed hand signals.
Two bullets pierced the engine block, but another hit the windshield and reportedly came within centimetres of striking a passenger. There were no injuries.
"How many warning shots go across a vehicle into the passenger compartment?" Michelle Cameron, a Canadian consular official travelling in the car, asked yesterday on CTV News.
No one in the Canadian vehicle saw any hand signals indicating they were too close to the convoy, the network quoted Ms. Cameron as saying.
According to Canadian officials, the diplomatic vehicle had been following well behind the U.S. convoy and only passed when the convoy pulled to the side of the road behind a waist-high concrete barrier. The Canadians claim the U.S. convoy and the car were separated by several lanes of traffic.
"We are reassured by our team in Baghdad that all appropriate procedures were followed. We are aware there are conflicting stories," said Marie-Christine Lilkoff, a Foreign Affairs spokeswoman.
Canada's diplomatic operations in Iraq are running with only a skeleton staff and the ambassador, John Holmes, is based out of the Canadian Embassy in Amman. Contrary to initial reports, Mr. Holmes was not travelling in the Canadian vehicle.
© The Ottawa Citizen 2006