Jolie Rouge
04-13-2003, 09:14 PM
By DEXTER FILKINS with CHARLIE LeDUFF
www.nytimes.com/2003/04/14/international/worldspecial/14POW.html?ex=1051502400&en=60cfb3a0024b70e9&ei=5004&partner=UNTD
IKRIT, Iraq, April 13 — Seven American prisoners of war were discovered alive in a town north of Baghdad today, three weeks after they vanished during fighting with the Iraqis.
The prisoners included five Army soldiers missing since their convoy was ambushed near the central Iraqi city of Nasiriya on March 23. The two others were the pilots of an Apache helicopter shot down during an assault on Republican Guard units near Karbala on March 24.
Two prisoners had suffered wounds, officials said, including the only woman in the group, Specialist Shosana Johnson, 30, of Fort Bliss, Tex.
Returning to the White House from Camp David, President Bush hailed their recovery, saying, "I am so pleased for their families and loved ones."
The prisoners were found in Samarra, about 110 miles north of Baghdad, by a group of marines who had moved into the town as part of the assault that began today on the city of Tikrit.
The marines said they were led to the prisoners by Iraqi soldiers who had been left behind by their own officers. The officers had fled as an American force of several thousand marines approached the city overnight. "You've got to give credit to the humanity of those Iraqi soldiers for returning the P.O.W.'s," said Capt. Neil. S. Murphy Jr., a Marine spokesman. "Given all the atrocities we've seen, we feared the worst. Our hearts were lifted today."
One marine described a joyous, tearful scene as the marines came upon the prisoners. "They all looked happy, they were all crying," said Zachery Schneider, whose unit took part in the recovery. "They all had really good beards."
The freed prisoners were taken aboard two helicopters and flown to a Marine base south of Baghdad, from which they were to be evacuated to Kuwait.
The Army identified the five prisoners from the 507th Maintenance Company as Specialist Joseph Hudson, 23, of Alamogordo, N.M.; Pfc. Patrick Miller, 23, of Park City, Kan.; Sgt. James Riley, 31, of Pennsauken, N.J.; Specialist Edgar Hernandez, 21, of Mission, Tex.; and Specialist Johnson. The same supply company included Pfc. Jessica Lynch, who was rescued by Special Operations commandos on April 1 at a hospital in Nasiriya.
The two Apache pilots are Chief Warrant Officer Ronald D. Young Jr., 26, of Lithia Springs, Ga., and Chief Warrant Officer David S. Williams, 30, of Orlando, Fla.
At the Marine base south of Baghdad, the newly freed soldiers looked haggard but happy. As they exited the helicopters that transported them, they hugged and kissed the marines who had turned out to welcome them.
Two of the prisoners, including Specialist Johnson, required treatment at the scene in Samarra, according to the marines who found them. Specialist Hernandez was said to have been shot in the elbow, while Specialist Johnson, wounded in her left leg, was carried out on a stretcher, the marines said. The others boarded the helicopters in Samarra on their own.
A military spokesman said the prisoners were being treated at a small medical facility at Kuwait City International Airport.
Brig. Gen. John F. Kelly, who is leading the attack on Tikrit, said it appeared that the Iraqis holding the prisoners had moved them constantly, pulling them farther north as the American military rolled forward. One Iraqi guard told the marines that the prisoners had recently been held in Baghdad, the general said.
"The guard indicated that he didn't think we'd be up here so fast," General Kelly said. "The Iraqis were moving the prisoners every day."
General Kelly said intelligence reports indicated that Iraqi forces were in Samarra as late as Saturday night. This morning, he ordered the Marine Third Armed Reconnaissance Battalion, around a dozen light armored vehicles, to go into the town and search for Iraqi military activity.
As the Americans entered Samarra, a centuries-old religious center known for a towering spiral minaret, they were approached by a group of Iraqi soldiers on the road to Tikrit. They said they had been left behind by officers who fled as American troops moved toward Tikrit, the last major stronghold of forces loyal to Saddam Hussein.
The fact that two groups of American prisoners were being held together suggested that, at least until late March, the Iraqi government had sufficient authority to gather prisoners in one place.
When the marines found the prisoners, they were dressed in local Iraqi clothes. The marines rummaged through their own armored vehicles for American military clothing, into which the prisoners changed "so they didn't have to wear those pajamas," Sergeant Major Hoffman said.
Finding the American prisoners buoyed the spirits of the marines here, just as they were preparing to go into battle. "This was probably the most inspiring event of the war so far," said Capt. George Benson, whose armored battalion found the prisoners. "They were elated."
After their medical exams, the spokesman said, they will be debriefed. He added that the debriefing was important because "by virtue of their experience they may have learned about things we're looking for or people we're looking for."
The seven were the only American troops officially listed as captured. Six American service members — five marines and one Army soldier — are still listed as missing in action. Military officials are not hopeful about finding them alive, but efforts to locate them are continuing.
The five Army soldiers recovered today disappeared on March 23 when their convoy was ambushed by Iraqis near Nasiriya. In all, 15 members of the supply company were seized. Two were confirmed dead shortly after the incident. The bodies of seven others were found at the hospital where Private Lynch was held.
Aside from Private Lynch, that left the five missing soldiers, and the two pilots downed in the Apache helicopter, for a total of seven. There were reports, shortly after the incident, that the bodies of several Americans had been found in a shallow grave near Nasiriya, but those reports turned out to be false.
www.nytimes.com/2003/04/14/international/worldspecial/14POW.html?ex=1051502400&en=60cfb3a0024b70e9&ei=5004&partner=UNTD
IKRIT, Iraq, April 13 — Seven American prisoners of war were discovered alive in a town north of Baghdad today, three weeks after they vanished during fighting with the Iraqis.
The prisoners included five Army soldiers missing since their convoy was ambushed near the central Iraqi city of Nasiriya on March 23. The two others were the pilots of an Apache helicopter shot down during an assault on Republican Guard units near Karbala on March 24.
Two prisoners had suffered wounds, officials said, including the only woman in the group, Specialist Shosana Johnson, 30, of Fort Bliss, Tex.
Returning to the White House from Camp David, President Bush hailed their recovery, saying, "I am so pleased for their families and loved ones."
The prisoners were found in Samarra, about 110 miles north of Baghdad, by a group of marines who had moved into the town as part of the assault that began today on the city of Tikrit.
The marines said they were led to the prisoners by Iraqi soldiers who had been left behind by their own officers. The officers had fled as an American force of several thousand marines approached the city overnight. "You've got to give credit to the humanity of those Iraqi soldiers for returning the P.O.W.'s," said Capt. Neil. S. Murphy Jr., a Marine spokesman. "Given all the atrocities we've seen, we feared the worst. Our hearts were lifted today."
One marine described a joyous, tearful scene as the marines came upon the prisoners. "They all looked happy, they were all crying," said Zachery Schneider, whose unit took part in the recovery. "They all had really good beards."
The freed prisoners were taken aboard two helicopters and flown to a Marine base south of Baghdad, from which they were to be evacuated to Kuwait.
The Army identified the five prisoners from the 507th Maintenance Company as Specialist Joseph Hudson, 23, of Alamogordo, N.M.; Pfc. Patrick Miller, 23, of Park City, Kan.; Sgt. James Riley, 31, of Pennsauken, N.J.; Specialist Edgar Hernandez, 21, of Mission, Tex.; and Specialist Johnson. The same supply company included Pfc. Jessica Lynch, who was rescued by Special Operations commandos on April 1 at a hospital in Nasiriya.
The two Apache pilots are Chief Warrant Officer Ronald D. Young Jr., 26, of Lithia Springs, Ga., and Chief Warrant Officer David S. Williams, 30, of Orlando, Fla.
At the Marine base south of Baghdad, the newly freed soldiers looked haggard but happy. As they exited the helicopters that transported them, they hugged and kissed the marines who had turned out to welcome them.
Two of the prisoners, including Specialist Johnson, required treatment at the scene in Samarra, according to the marines who found them. Specialist Hernandez was said to have been shot in the elbow, while Specialist Johnson, wounded in her left leg, was carried out on a stretcher, the marines said. The others boarded the helicopters in Samarra on their own.
A military spokesman said the prisoners were being treated at a small medical facility at Kuwait City International Airport.
Brig. Gen. John F. Kelly, who is leading the attack on Tikrit, said it appeared that the Iraqis holding the prisoners had moved them constantly, pulling them farther north as the American military rolled forward. One Iraqi guard told the marines that the prisoners had recently been held in Baghdad, the general said.
"The guard indicated that he didn't think we'd be up here so fast," General Kelly said. "The Iraqis were moving the prisoners every day."
General Kelly said intelligence reports indicated that Iraqi forces were in Samarra as late as Saturday night. This morning, he ordered the Marine Third Armed Reconnaissance Battalion, around a dozen light armored vehicles, to go into the town and search for Iraqi military activity.
As the Americans entered Samarra, a centuries-old religious center known for a towering spiral minaret, they were approached by a group of Iraqi soldiers on the road to Tikrit. They said they had been left behind by officers who fled as American troops moved toward Tikrit, the last major stronghold of forces loyal to Saddam Hussein.
The fact that two groups of American prisoners were being held together suggested that, at least until late March, the Iraqi government had sufficient authority to gather prisoners in one place.
When the marines found the prisoners, they were dressed in local Iraqi clothes. The marines rummaged through their own armored vehicles for American military clothing, into which the prisoners changed "so they didn't have to wear those pajamas," Sergeant Major Hoffman said.
Finding the American prisoners buoyed the spirits of the marines here, just as they were preparing to go into battle. "This was probably the most inspiring event of the war so far," said Capt. George Benson, whose armored battalion found the prisoners. "They were elated."
After their medical exams, the spokesman said, they will be debriefed. He added that the debriefing was important because "by virtue of their experience they may have learned about things we're looking for or people we're looking for."
The seven were the only American troops officially listed as captured. Six American service members — five marines and one Army soldier — are still listed as missing in action. Military officials are not hopeful about finding them alive, but efforts to locate them are continuing.
The five Army soldiers recovered today disappeared on March 23 when their convoy was ambushed by Iraqis near Nasiriya. In all, 15 members of the supply company were seized. Two were confirmed dead shortly after the incident. The bodies of seven others were found at the hospital where Private Lynch was held.
Aside from Private Lynch, that left the five missing soldiers, and the two pilots downed in the Apache helicopter, for a total of seven. There were reports, shortly after the incident, that the bodies of several Americans had been found in a shallow grave near Nasiriya, but those reports turned out to be false.