[NYTr] Video Claims to Show Downed US Pilot Being Dragged

[nytr at olm.blythe-systems.com]

[The fact that the military was so mysterious about the fate of the
crew of this helicopter, which they finally admitted was probably shot
down and didn't just "crash," lends some credence to this claim.  After
they admitted the chopper was probably shot down, only a few miles 
outside Baghdad, it was 2 or 3 more days before they announced the bodies
of the crew had been recovered.  It certainly seemed they were having a
major problem getting to the site. -NY Transfer]

AP - Apr 5, 2006
http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/I/IRAQ_HELICOPTER_VIDEO?SITE=ALOPE&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT

Video Claims to Show Pilot Being Dragged

By NADIA ABOU EL-MAGD
Associated Press Writer

CAIRO, Egypt (AP) -- A video posted on the Internet Wednesday in the name of
an extremist group claimed to show Iraqi insurgents dragging the burning
body of a U.S. pilot on the ground after the crash of an Apache helicopter.

Parts of the video were blurry, and the face of the man being dragged was
not shown. His clothes were so tattered it was impossible to tell if he was
wearing an American military uniform.

The U.S. military condemned the posting and said that although reports of a
Web site video "suggest that terrorists removed part of a body from the
crash site, the authenticity of the video cannot be confirmed."

"We are outraged that anyone would create and publish such a despicable
video for public exposure," U.S. military spokesman Lt. Col. Jonathan
Withington said.

The video, posted by a group calling itself the Shura Council of Mujahedeen,
claimed that its military wing had shot down the craft, which the U.S.
military said went down Saturday.

According to statements on Islamist Web sites, the Mujahedeen Shura Council
was organized in January to consolidate al-Qaida in Iraq and other insurgent
groups. The move was seen as an effort by Iraqi insurgents to lower the
profile of al-Qaida leader Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, a Jordanian, whose mass
attacks against Shiite civilians have tarnished the image of the insurgents
among many Iraqis.

The footage in the video, which also was e-mailed to reporters, was blurry
but the helicopter could be seen clearly. However, it was not possible to
see if it had U.S. markings.

The video also clearly showed the bloody, burning body of a man being
dragged through a field. The extremist group, in audio attached to the
video, said he was a U.S. helicopter pilot.

In its statement, the U.S. military said it confirmed that the two pilots in
the downed helicopter had died, and it had recovered "all available remains
found on the scene, given the catastrophic nature of the crash."

The AH-64D Apache Longbow crashed at about 5:30 p.m. Saturday due to
possible hostile fire west of Youssifiyah while conducting a combat air
patrol, the military said. Youssifiyah is about 10 miles southwest of
Baghdad.

About 24 hours later, the military released a statement saying the pilots
were "presumed dead" and that recovery efforts were underway, indicating
they had not fully secured the site or retrieved the bodies.

Youssifiyah is located in the "triangle of death," a religiously mixed area
notorious for attacks by Sunni extremists against Shiites traveling between
Baghdad and religious shrines south of the capital.

The Albany (N.Y.) Times Union reported that Capt. Timothy Moshier, 25, of
nearby Bethlehem, was killed Saturday when the Apache helicopter he was
piloting crashed at around the same time and place southwest of Baghdad.

He leaves behind his wife, Katherine, and their 10-month-old daughter,
Natalie, the newspaper said.

© 2006 The Associated Press.