shocking

and sad and unbelievable. we all know there are crazy people in the world. amoral, no conscience, yes even evil. however, to have three, four or five of these people all together cannot be a coincidence, can it? i do so hope this entire story is NOT true.

AP: Alleged U.S. Atrocity in Iraq May Have Been Premeditated Murder
Published: July 01, 2006 1:00 PM ET
BAGHDAD Investigators believe a group of U.S. soldiers suspected of raping an Iraqi woman, then killing her and three members of her family plotted the attack for nearly a week, a U.S. military official said Saturday. Up to five soldiers are being investigated in the March killings, the fifth pending case involving alleged slayings of Iraqi civilians by U.S. troops. The Americans entered the Sunni Arab's family home, separated three males from the woman, raped her and burned her body using a flammable liquid in a cover-up attempt, a military official close to the investigation said. The three males were also slain. A senior Army official who also requested anonymity because the investigation is ongoing said one of the victims was a child. The soldiers had studied their victims for about a week and the attack was "totally premeditated," the official said on condition of anonymity because the investigation was ongoing. The family had just moved into the home in the insurgent-riddled area around Mahmoudiya, 20 miles south of Baghdad. The U.S. military issued a terse statement about the killings Friday, saying only that Maj. Gen. James D. Thurman, commander of the 4th Infantry Division, ordered a criminal investigation into the alleged slaying of a family of four in Mahmoudiya. U.S. officials said they knew of the deaths but thought the victims were killed in sectarian violence. But Mahmoudiya police Capt. Ihsan Abdul-Rahman said Iraqi officials received a report on March 13 alleging that American soldiers had killed the family in the Khasir Abyad area, about 6 miles north of Mahmoudiya. ..........

UPDATE: AP Embed Gets Scoop on Latest Alleged U.S. Atrocity

By E&P Staff Published: July 01, 2006 12:05 PM ET
NEW YORK AP correspondent Ryan Lenz, embedded with the 101st Airborne Division in Beiji, Iraq, produced the latest news bulletin today concerning yetr another alleged U.S. atrocity in Iraq, and one of the worst yet.Lenz reported this morning that five U.S. Army soldiers are being investigated for allegedly raping a young woman, then killing her on March 12-- and three members of her family in Iraq. The soldiers also allegedly burned the body of the woman they are accused of raping. Iraqi police had been told about the killings three months ago. The U.S. contended the killings were by insurgents, until two or three soldiers spoke up. The New York Times followed on this report later in the afternoon: "The deaths were originally attributed by the military to 'insurgent activity,' American officials said. That implies that soldiers involved in the incident may have misreported it to their commanders, or that there may have been a cover-up in the chain of command, as is suspected in the case of the Haditha killings last November.............