<font face="Verdana" size="3" color="#00FF00">Oh! This is a unique story and the first I have heard of villagers killing informants.</font>

Villagers force execution of informer by father, brother.

Two hours before the dawn call to prayer, in a village still shrouded in silence, Sabah Kerbul’s executioners arrived. His father carried an AK-47 assault rifle, as did his brother. And with barely a word spoken, they led the man accused by the village of working as an informer for the Americans behind a house girded with fig trees, vineyards and orange groves.

http://www.msnbc.com/news/946837.asp...120030933#BODY

Terrible.

<font color='white'> Hmm, thats weird. </font>

http://www.msnbc.com/news/946838.asp?0sl=-10

<font color='green'>In Iraq, some assailants don’t escape

Amid new U.S. casualties, a father turns in his teenage son

By Theola Labbé
THE WASHINGTON POST

BAGHDAD, July 31 — U.S. troops in Iraq have grown grimly accustomed to guerrilla-style assaults by nameless, faceless attackers who toss grenades or fire mortars at them on an almost daily basis.



BUT IRAQIS WHO live along Baghdad’s busy Haifa Street refused to let such an attack go unsolved this morning. When someone shot an antitank weapon at a U.S. military armored vehicle, wounding one soldier, local residents identified a teenager from the neighborhood as the assailant, and the boy’s father handed him over to U.S. troops, witnesses said.
“Those soldiers were very nice guys,” said Salim Saheb Alwan, 55, a retired military officer who witnessed the attack. “We used to talk to them and play with these people.” </font>

What is weird?

A duel of propaganda- the Iraqis like us- no they dont- my article says they do- mine says they dont. This could get interesting. ;)

<font face="Verdana" size="3" color="#00FF00">Ahh! No wonder I was so confused by the later, and could not see any relevance to what I posted. I was obviously not dueling. I did not post the article to say that Iraqis don't like American troops in Iraq. It is obvious that some do and some don't. However a village in what seems to be a pro-Saddam area asked a father to kill his son for aiding the coalition or they would kill the entire family. That I find shocking and almost unbelievable that a father should be asked to kill his own son or else.</font>

[ 08-01-2003, 04:33 PM: Message edited by: pritchke ]

Shocking indeed. Culture shock. The guy who turned in Saddams sons is considered to some a traitor and a violator of the Islamic custom to provide shelter for those who ask for. Doesnt matter if they were the spawn of evil itself, tradition calls to provide sanctuary for guests who ask for it.

Different culture, different values, something many Westerns fail to realize and is a potential huge stumbling block to winning the "hearts and minds" of the Iraqi people. How can we win them over if we trample all over their customs and beleifs?

Two sides of the conflict I suppose.

<font color='white'> Right. Two almost exaclley oposite reports. I am kind of surprised there is not more tension between Iraqi's themselfs. </font>

I think that there probably is - only their deaths are merely put down to the 'prevailing lawlessness'...

Don't forget Hitlers youth groups who were told to inform on anyone family included who were helping the allies.Often turned in their parents or neighbors.

Not so sure about that. When you read the full article about the man who turned in an attacker it turns out that the locals suspected him of being involved in robberies:

"Salem said he had hoped that the boy would give U.S. authorities the names of other criminals on Haifa Street "so that this can cool off the shooting and stealing and looting."
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn...2003Jul31.html

Which sounds very much to me like the 'informer' was using the situation to remove a local 'pest' who may not have had anything to do with the attack...