Sweetness & Light has uncovered some interesting background about the doctor who examined the victims in Haditha allegedly massacred by Marines, and whose words have been widely picked—up in press acounts. Of course, transliterations from Arabic vary, so thgere is no certainty he is the same man, but this is a promising lead.

You have probably heard by now that the doctor who examined the bodies of the civilians in Haditha after the alleged Marine rampage said they were shot in the chest and head and from close range.

You have probably also heard it reported that the death certificates of the deceased record that all the victims were shot. [....]

Being the highest ranking doctor on the scene, Wahid (Walid) is probably the person who filled out the death certificates, or he ordered them filled out.

What we haven't been told by our one party media is some of the background on the good doctor.

It turns out that the good doctor Walid has his own experiences with the US military which may not dispose him to dispassionate medical judgments. From the Brussels Tribune (via S&L):

Dr. Walid Al—Obeidi, the director of Haditha General Hospital and Dr. Jamil Abdul Jabbar, the only surgeon in the Haditha area, were arrested for a week, very badly beaten and threatened to face the same treatment in the future by the American troops.

Dr.Walid said 'they arrested me in my house in front of my family, covered my eyes, and tied my hands to the back on Oct 5 2005 morning, during the last attack on Haditha (360 kilometers west of Baghdad). They occupied the hospital for 8 days and made it their office. The first day they beat me on my eyes, nose, back, hands, legs... My face was covered with blood. I could not wash my face because bleeding would start again. When they removed the tie I could not see. They investigated me until the afternoon. I realized later that I was arrested in the hospital store. Then they tied my hands to the front, and left me for two days. I was moved then to the pharmacy department. They accused me of treating terrorists, and asked for their names.

Then there is the Reuters reporter who first broke the story.

Given the breathless coverage (actually only repetition of the same paltry facts) from our one party media about the civilian deaths in Haditha, I am surprised that we have heard nothing about the curious background of one of the first journalists to report the story, Ali Omar Abrahem al—Mashhadani, from the "restive town" of Ramadi.

It turns out Mr. al—Mashhadani might not have felt the kindliest intentions towards the US, having been imprisoned for five months mere weeks before his Haditha scoop.

Al—Mashhadani was detained because images found on his camera and because of his t"ies to the insurgents," according to US officials.

Indeed, al—Mashhadani has since been detained by the US again, for two weeks. In fact he was only released today.

As all the facts are investigated, let's be certain to look into these men very closely.

Major kudos to Sweetness & Light.

Thomas Lifson  6 2 06