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Four Security Officers Killed, Mutilated in Iraq Fighting
On Wednesday, March 31, four security officers working in Iraq were killed by terrorists. Four vehicles carrying security officers from Blackwater Security Consulting of Moyock, N.C., were attacked in the town of Fallujah, 30 miles west of Baghdad. The officers were providing security for food deliveries in the area. All four had served in the United States military prior to working for Blackwater. Three were Navy SEALs, and one was an Army Ranger.
Shortly after the attack occurred, two of the vehicles were able to escape. The remaining two were set on fire. Men and boys as young as 10, as reported by some journalists who were able to film the incident, pored into the street after the attack to celebrate. One reporter witnessed a corpse being dragged from one of the vehicles and torn to pieces, and another report shows a 10 year old boy grinding his heel into the head of another body.
Responsibility for the town of Fallujah recently changed hands from Army units to a Marine contingent. The town of approximately 300,000 has been a hotbed of violence since the fall of the Saddam Hussein regime. Wednesday�s attacks, including another in Fallujah that left five Marines dead, are believed to have been carried out by forces aligned with the ousted dictator. Last week, a running firefight between Hussein loyalists and Marines erupted in the downtown area, leaving one marine and several Iraqi civilians dead.
ASSIST would like to extend its deepest sympathies to Blackwater Security and the families of the fallen officers. There service in protecting the freedom of the Iraqi people will not be forgotten.
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