...
>
http://members.aon.at/hpkr/kawther/K20030819A.html > Secret Burials in the desert :..
> Ultimate disrespect for U.S. Army personnel in Iraq :..
> August 19, 2003
> 2000 - Mazen Dana arguing with a soldier during a demonstration at the
> entrance of Shuhada street in Hebron
> Did the Pentagon order the assassintaion of a Journalist in order to cover
> up secret mass burials of dead U.S Soldiers in the desert around Baghdad ?
> What is really behind the killing of my colleague, the Palestinian
Reuters
> Cameraman Mazen Dana, in Bagdad? Is the Pentagon really scared of the
media
> telling the U.S public what is really going on in Iraq? Do the criminals
in
> the Pentagon want to cover their crimes against their own soldiers by
> killing journalists in Iraq? If, then this is what can be called organized
> terror.
> The U.S. troops obviously felt themselves threatened and in big danger of
> the Palestinian Reuters Cameraman Mazen Dana, who was developing a story
> about secret burials of U.S. mercenaries and soldiers in mass graves in
> far-away places in deserts strips around Baghdad, which had obviously been
> authorized
> by the commanders of the U.S. army.
> Mazen's scoop began when he realized that that the U.S. troops were
burying
> human bodies wrapped in plastic in the desert. He thought that these were
> the bodies of Iraqi people. He kept watching and investigating the
> activities of the U.S. troops in the desert. He kept developing his scoop,
> working around
> different U.S. units and military jails, trying to figure out from were
the
> bodies could come from, wether they belonged to Iraqis or not.
> He could ultimately develop a source, a U.S. mercenary, who told him that
> those buried were not Iraqis, but mercenaries who had been promised green
> cards and U.S. citizenship in return for serving in the U.S. army.
> According to this source, not few of those interred were americans who had
> been killed in combat. Mazen had been able to film the activities of the
> U.S. army, and their secret mass graves. Mazen Dana was experienced in
> journalistic work in areas of conflict and under dangerous conditions. In
> our hometown Hebron, he had been covering the Israeli Duvdevan units,
> essentially death squads of the Israeli army, which can not normally be
> filmed. Since he had become aware of what the americans were doing in the
> desert, he kept the secret for himself. The intelligence units of the U.S.
> army probably knew that Mazen was beating about the bush, and they must
have
> feared that their secret desert burials would expose the Pentagon and the
> army to a big scandal.
> The U.S. Army pride themselves of always bringing home their dead, and
this
> ultimate disrespect for their own would probably be frowned upon by the
> american society at large, even if not few of them were mercenaries. The
> story also had the potential of making foreigns think twice before joining
> the U.S. military forces as mercenaries, nobody wants to be disrespected
in
> this most abject and impious way, not even those who will sign up as
> mercenaries.
> During his last days, Mazen felt that the U.S. Army were observing him.
Ten
> days before his death, he called home to Hebron and told his family that
he
> feared for his life because of the story he was developing, and he
promised
> them to return as soon as he had finished his investigating work. On
Sunday,
> August 17, 2003, at noon and under shining sun, Mazen Dana was
assasinated
> by the U.S. Army outside Abu Ghraib prison, where they had previously
given
> him permit to film.
> According to my colleague Nael al-Shyoukhi, who was with Dana at the time
of
> his death, the camera team was known to the U.S. military personnel at the
> prison. al-Shyoukhi said that they had asked for permission to interview
an
> officer, what had been denied. The soldiers had seen their I.D.s and knew
> about their
> mission and intentions.
> 2000 - Nael al-Shyoukhi, who was with Mazen when he was shot, here at
Gross
> square in Hebron.
> Nael Al-Shyioukhi said "after we filmed we went into the car and prepared
to
> go when a convoy led by a tank arrived and Mazen stepped out of the car to
> film, I followed him then, Mazen walked three to four meters. We were
noted
> and clearly seen at the mid of the day. The soldier on the tank shot at
us.
> I lay on the ground, I heard Mazen I saw him scream and touch his chest
with
> covered bloody hand".
> The Pentagon Response: The U.S officials said that the troops mistook
> Mazen's camera for an RPG launcher. This was obviously a lie which nobody,
> not even naive people will be able to believe. How can it be that the U.S.
> troops have the most tecnologically advanced sensors on their weapons, but
> will not be able to distinguish a camera from an RPG launcher at 50 meters
?
> Did the U.S. troops learn to lie from their friends at the IDF ? This
> killing was a prepared assassination by the U.S troops in order to cover
up
> their criminal activities, which Mazen had discovered and was about to
> expose.
> When I received the news of killing my colleague Mazen Dana in Iraq, I
> thought for the first moment that the Israeli government was involved or
in
> some way behind it. Mazen Dana had troubled the israeli occupation more
than
> enough.
> The Israeli occupation targeted Dana several time during the Intifada, and
> even before that during the peace time. He was shot in Hebron in 1998 by
the
> IDF, together with his colleague Nael Al-Shyioukhi. Mazen Dana had been
> exposed to the daily daily crimes of killing and collective murdering in
the
> Hebron and the
> occupied territories, and he was shot again by the IDF during 2001. The
> Israelis were obviously not interested in his return from Iraq to Hebron.
> All Palestinians know that the U.S Pentagon and the Israeli Defense
Ministry
> do work together. Maybe we do not realize this, but we are killed by the
IDF
> soldiers who use U.S. bullets, grenades, rockets and missiles, airplanes.
> The U.S is constantly providing Israel with developed killing machineries.
> They U.S soldiers
> trained the Israeli soldiers to raid the Jenin refugee camp and other
> cities, they trained the Israelis in assassinating, killing and chasing
> "wanted" people. They also offered the P.A Minister Muhammad Dahlan to
train
> his forces to do that. Probably soon the P.A. forces will be chasing and
> murdering Palestinians
> instead of the IDF.
> When I called Hebron to offer my condolences to Mazen Dana's family and to
> inquire about his death, I was informed about his investigation in Iraq
> about secret mass burials by the U.S soldiers in Iraqi desert. This made
me
> worry about my other colleague Nael Al-Shyioukhi, who was still in Iraq,
so
> I delayed writing this
> story until after Nael's safe return to our home town Hebron.
> Mazen Dana in brief: Mazen Dana held a B.A. in English Literature from
> Hebron University. He was remarked as a member of the Popular Front during
> his time in the University. For this he was a targeted and harassed by the
> Israeli occupation even after he stopped his political activities.
> During the first Intifada I worked for a short while with Dana as a
> correspondent of Voice of Palestine Radio in Jerusalem. After that I
worked
> with Al Fajir Newspaper, and Dana continued his work with the different
> journalistic offices. He was requested several times by the Israeli civil
> administration in Hebron. He became a peace supporter after the signing of
> the Oslo Agreement, and he became a member of Fatah Peace Wing. He had
been
> employed by Reuters since 10 years as a Cameraman to cover the conflict in
> his hometown Hebron. Mazen Dana and Nael Al-Shyioukhi had been working
> together for eight years when Mazen was shot last Sunday.
> The Israelis occupation intelligence continued considering Mazen Dana as a
> member of Popular Front party even after he discontinued his activities
with
> them, and they did not grant him the an Israeli Government Press "GPO"
Card,
> or a travel permit to visit the Reuters office in Jerusalem.
> 2000 - Journalists Imad Al-Saidi, Mazen Dana, Majdi Ibedo at a demo in
> Ramallah
> Dana was attacked several times by Jewish settlers and the IDF soldiers in
> Hebron. In May 2000, Dana was shot in the leg with a rubber-coated bullet
> while filming Palestinian youths throwing stones towards the Hebron area
H2
> under Israeli control. Dana was arrested hundreds of times. In 1997 Dana
was
> arrested as a result of filming the IDF soldiers arresting me during an
> incident at the Halhol bridge border, were the IDF soldiers had caused the
> death of a nine year old child death by preventing him from reaching
> hospital in hebron during a curfew which was imposed on the city during
the
> peace time.
> Dana established the Journalist House of Hebron during the year 2002
despite
> the daily attacks and the constant threat of arrests made by the IDF
> soldiers against all Hebronite journalists.
> The last time I met my colleague Mazen Dana was at the end of May 2002 at
> our colleague's house Hossam Abu Allan, the AFP photographer who was
> arrested by the IDF soldiers. At 10:30 at the same night Mazen drove with
me
> in his Jeep to "Al-Beweareh" mountain to film the IDF war tanks, 54 armed
> vehicle were
> arriving to Hebron on the road 60 as the military was preparing to
re-occupy
> the city of Hebron, the area H1 under the PA control.
> Mazen Dana had a long experience as a television cameraman, and he had
> experienced the hardships and harsh working conditions of journalistic
work
> under military occupation.
> Mazen Dana left behind him a wife and four cute children in Hebron. He
left
> a courageously historical journalistic experience and signs for other
> journalists
...
