Iraq: GI in Custody Sfter Killing 5 at Camp Liberty ‘Stress Clinic’
May 11th, 2009Via: MSNBC:
A U.S. soldier opened fire on fellow troops Monday, killing five before being taken into custody, the U.S. command said. NBC News reported that the shooting took place at a “stress clinic” on the main base in Baghdad.
Contrary to earlier reports, the soldier did not kill himself but was overpowered and taken into U.S. custody.
The shooting occurred at Camp Liberty, a sprawling U.S. base on the western edge of Baghdad near the city’s international airport and adjacent to another facility where President Barack Obama visited last month.
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A brief U.S. statement said the soldier “suspected of being involved with the shooting” was in custody but gave no further details. It was unclear what provoked the attack.
“Anytime we lose one of our own, it affects us all,” U.S. spokesman Col. John Robinson said. “Our hearts go out to the families and friends of all the service members involved in this terrible tragedy.”
Separately, the military announced Monday that a U.S. soldier was also killed a day earlier when a roadside bomb exploded near his vehicle in Basra province of southern Baghdad.
The death toll from the Monday shooting was the highest for U.S. personnel in a single attack since April 10, when a suicide truck driver killed five American soldiers with a blast near a police headquarters in Mosul.
Fragging rare in Iraq, Afghan wars
It’s not clear whether the victims were higher ranked than the assailant.
Such an attack — on officers and sergeants — is known as fraggings and was not uncommon during the Vietnam war as morale in the ranks sank. However, such attacks are believed to be rare in the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.
More deaths for Iraqi democracy. MAN I hope those damn Iraqis appreciate our sacrifice!
/sarcasm
Actually, there are far fewer fraggings in the Middle East conflicts than in Vietnam. However, there is a much higher incidence of suicides and domestic violence by our returning vets today. Goes to show you that our current crop of vets is taking their frustration out on the wrong people.
Vietnam saw draftees sucked into the machine who then snapped and took out the nearest authority figure. Today you have “volunteers” who essentially have only themselves to blame for getting into the hell hole they now inhabit. So they more often snap and take themselves out. The only constant in all this misery is an indifferent military. Best to avoid them at all costs.