Iraq to ask US to hand over Haditha file
(AP)
Updated: 2006-06-02 19:23
The Iraqi government will ask the United States for the investigative files
into allegations that U.S. Marines killed Iraqi civilians in Haditha last year,
Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki said on Friday.
Standing beside U.S. Ambassador Zalmay Khalilzad during a visit to a Baghdad
power plant, Maliki said he first heard of the alleged November 19 massacre in
the western town through the media.
"I hope it (the U.S. investigation) will be fair for the sake of all the
victims," said the Shi'ite Islamist whose government of national unity was sworn
in 13 days ago.
Asked if he would demand the files, Maliki told reporters without
elaborating: "Yes."
U.S. defense officials have said murder charges may be brought against
Marines following an investigation into the deaths of 24 civilians in Haditha,
which some commentators are comparing to the 1968 My Lai massacre in Vietnam.
President George W. Bush on Thursday promised a thorough independent
investigation. "I expect this investigation to be conducted independent of the
White House, with a full and thorough investigation," he told reporters in
Washington.
Maliki, who has said he is losing patience with reports of killings of Iraqi
civilians, condemned the suspected massacre in Haditha as a "terrible crime" on
Thursday.
U.S. military spokesmen say three or four other cases
involving allegations that U.S. troops killed Iraqi civilians are under
investigation.
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