U.S. kills 3 in attack, villagers say

SAJR, Iraq - U.S. soldiers backed by helicopters firing rockets attacked a farmhouse Tuesday, killing three Iraqis and wounding three others, villagers said. The U.S. military said soldiers followed suspected guerrillas into this village after a patrol was ambushed.

Afterward, five craters ranging up to 10 feet wide and 3 feet deep could be seen in the courtyard of the farmhouse. A sixth rocket had crashed through the roof. The yard was strewn with broken glass and a wall on one side of the building was pocked with bullet holes.

The fighting in Sajr, a small village west of Baghdad, highlighted the difficulties of combating guerrillas in populated areas and was likely to deepen resentment of the U.S. occupation in an already volatile region.

"There never was any trouble in our village and the Americans have never been inside it," one of the wounded, retired army Sgt. Abed Rasheed, told the Associated Press at Fallujah General Hospital. "This is not about overthrowing a government or regime change."

The U.S. military confirmed a combined air-ground assault took place here but said it knew of only one death - that of a guerrilla fighter. A military spokeswoman, Spc. Nicole Thompson, said that after firing on an American patrol, the attackers ran into a building. She said the soldiers then called in air support.

Villagers insisted no one had fired on the Americans. They did say that U.S. soldiers detained three young men during a security sweep Sunday.

Residents said the Americans appeared in the village about 1:30 a.m. Tuesday and began firing with light weapons. Villagers later heard aircraft approaching.

Soon afterward, six missiles struck the home of Ali Khalaf Mohammed, killing the 45-year-old farmer. Two of Mohammed's sons, ages 11 and 9, were wounded.

Villagers said two other men - Saadi Fayad and Salem Ismail - were killed after they rushed to Mohammed's house to offer assistance.

Mohammed's 48-year-old brother, said a U.S. officer came to the house about 9 a.m. Tuesday to inspect the damage. He said the officer, speaking through an interpreter, apologized and said, "We are here to protect you."

"I replied, "If this is your protection we don't need it,"' the brother said. "The Americans think we are protecting Saddam's people, but in our village we never even liked Saddam." He did not recall the name of the officer.

Sajr, 9 miles north of Fallujah, is part of the "Sunni Triangle," an area north and west of Baghdad where support for Saddam Hussein runs deepest and where American troops have met their stiffest resistance since the collapse of his regime in April.

During funerals for the three Tuesday afternoon, villagers and relatives wept and cursed the Americans.

"Why? Why?" screamed Jouri, Mohammed's oldest sister, as some 250 male villagers prepared to bury the victims in Sajr's dusty cemetery. "Why are the Americans doing this to us?" she shouted as she beat her chest and head with her hands. Two dozen women screamed and wailed in unison.

"May God's curse fall upon the Americans, for they have no fear of God," said Mohsen Herish, a cousin of Mohammed. "Are these American human rights?"

The soldiers involved in Tuesday's incident were from the 82nd Airborne Division, the same command that mistakenly killed eight Iraqi police officers and a Jordanian guard Sept. 12 in Fallujah. In April, soldiers from the 82nd Airborne shot dead 18 and injured 78 on two successive days, also in Fallujah. In both cases, the U.S. military said the soldiers were fired on first. A senior U.S. Army officer is leading an investigation into the Sept. 12 shooting.

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