Such are the fortunes of war, I guess
U.S. Military Inquiry Into Deaths of 4 Iraqis Is Inconclusive
American troops are suspected in the machine-gun attack that killed a taxi driver and three passengers, but no culprit has been found.
From Times Staff and Wire Services
March 7, 2004
TIKRIT, Iraq — The U.S. military has closed an investigation into the January killings of four Iraqis whose deaths were blamed on American troops, saying it couldn't find the culprits, the Army said today.
No one claimed responsibility for the Jan. 3 deaths of the Iraqis — a taxi driver and three passengers, including a woman and a 7-year-old boy — who were killed by heavy machine-gun fire as their cab traveled near Tikrit. The sole survivor, another passenger, blamed American troops.
The Army did conclude that someone affiliated with the U.S.-led coalition probably shot at the taxi. The bullets appear to have come from a mounted .50-caliber machine gun of the type used by U.S. forces, said Maj. Josslyn Aberle, a spokeswoman for the Tikrit-based 4th Infantry Division, which investigated the incident.
"It's an unsolved case. We could not get enough information to determine if it was a military unit that did it," Aberle said today. She said either the military or a private security firm could have been responsible.
