Even anti-Americans should be able to cheer this rescue...

Lincoln · April 3, 2003, 09:17

How about it? Isn't this a great story? A bunch of angry yet caring men rescuing a damsel in distress. Kind of brings tears to your eyes doesn't it?

-----------------------------------------------

http://www.nationalpost.com/home/story.html?id={6C95D041-CF5E-401D-A2A4-9598B87F9E4D}

WASHINGTON - As U.S. special forces hurtled out of a Black Hawk helicopter to rescue Private Jessica Lynch from an Iraqi hospital in a night-time raid, Gen. Tommy Franks watched the entire operation unfold via a live video feed.

The U.S. commander watched as special forces shot their way into the hospital in Nasiriya, found the wounded 19-year-old and shot their way back out again.

"It was a classic joint operation done by some of our nation's finest warriors ... loyal to the creed they know that they'll never leave a fallen comrade behind and never embarrass their country," Brigadier-General Vincent Brooks said after the operation.

The commandos also found two bodies in the morgue, possibly from Pte. Lynch's unit. And they were led outside the hospital where they were shown nine freshly dug graves.

"We have reason to believe some of them were Americans," said navy Captain Frank Thorp, a U.S. Central Command spokesman.

The first successful rescue of a U.S. POW from enemy hands since the Second World War came shortly after midnight on Tuesday.

The "extraction" of Pte. Lynch, an Army supply clerk from the 507th Ordnance Maintenance Company, was put in motion after the Central Intelligence Agency received a tip, likely from newly captured Iraqi prisoners, that a badly wounded American was being held in the Saddam Hospital near Nasiriya.

As Army Rangers, Navy SEALs and Air Force pilots flew toward the Saddam Hospital in an unlit Black Hawk, U.S. forces knocked out Nasiriya's power.

In a diversionary tactic launched 15 minutes before the raid, U.S. Marines launched a massive attack against Fedayeen militia in the city. They were backed by Harrier attack jets, which demolished the headquarters of the local Baath Party.

"We weren't trying to take the city but we were attempting to distract them and scare the daylights out of them in order to open the way for the U.S. special forces. It worked perfectly," said Major Mike Tanner, a British commando who helped set up the operation.

The rescue team, wearing night vision goggles and transmitting live video, landed at about 1 a.m. and immediately came under sniper fire as they jumped from the helicopter and raced to the hospital.

The Rangers set up a perimeter to defend the operation, while the SEAL commandos made their way into the building to rescue the captured American. Overhead, an Air Force gunship made sure no Iraqi forces got close.

The hospital had been seized by Iraqi soldiers who transformed it into a military post before the war began. However, most of the fighters had left the hospital.

As soon as the Americans arrived, patients and staff began emerging from the hospital with their hands up.

Inside, commandos covered one another, as they advanced from door to door until they reached the young POW.

Pte. Lynch, from Palestine, W. Va., was coherent enough to give her rescuers a thumb's up. Her rescuers then loaded her on to a stretcher.

When several soldiers emerged carrying Pte. Lynch, they came under fire again but were able to escape without anyone being killed or injured.

"Some brave souls put their lives on the line to carry this out," Gen. Brooks said.

An eerie green night-vision video released by the Pentagon showed Pte. Lynch being rushed to the helicopter which lifted her to safety. Gen. Franks was able to see the whole of the action on a video screen at his headquarters in Qatar, 1,000 kilometres away.

Members of the strike force who stayed behind after Pte. Lynch was evacuated later made the gruesome discovery of the bodies and graves. Forensic tests are being conducted on the bodies to determine whether they were U.S. servicemen.

The rescue team also found Saddam's loyalists had set up an armoury in the hospital basement, with ammunition, mortars and maps.

On hearing news of the successful rescue, George W. Bush, the U.S. President, said, "That's great."

Pte. Lynch, a folded U.S. flag lying on her chest, was later transferred to another aircraft and gave a weak smile as her picture was taken by a military photographer. She arrived at the Landstuhl Medical Centre in Germany yesterday afternoon. She was being treated for broken bones and gunshot wounds and was reported in stable condition.

Pte. Lynch was captured after her company took a wrong turn near Nasiriya on March 23 and was ambushed.

Of the 15 soldiers in the unit, five were captured and later shown on Iraqi television, two were reported killed and the rest were listed as missing.

The rescue is the first such successful operation since the Second World War, said Larry Greer, a retired lieutenant colonel in charge of the Defence Department's POW-MIA office.

Urban Ranger · April 3, 2003, 09:22

What's this with your constant trolling, Lincoln?

MRT144 · April 3, 2003, 09:23

actually i was hoping saddam would personally rape her.

Lincoln · April 3, 2003, 09:24

Are you cheering or not UR? This is not a troll, although I did try to make the title to the thread provocative so it would be read.

TheStinger · April 3, 2003, 09:31

seems like a bad case of affirmitive action to me

Urban Ranger · April 3, 2003, 09:31

I read somewhere else that she was found, not "rescued."

Of course it is much better than a story of how the US bombed an Iraqi hospital.

Lincoln · April 3, 2003, 09:34

Quote:

Originally posted by Urban Ranger
I read some where else that she was found, not "rescued."

Beleive me UR, there is really some things done by Americans that are good. Stop looking for the flies in the ointment. Isn't this a good thing?

DinoDoc · April 3, 2003, 10:03

Quote:

Originally posted by Urban Ranger
I read somewhere else that she was found, not "rescued."

All the sources I've seen agree that it was a recue operation. I would have thought that you would have commented on the Iraqis giving her medical treatment though. It mildly suprised me.

BeBro · April 3, 2003, 10:05

For Lincoln:

VJ · April 3, 2003, 10:05

Idjiots (reg. trademark) :

I DID NOT MENT THIS:

Quote:

WASHINGTON - As U.S. special forces hurtled out of a Black Hawk helicopter to rescue Private Jessica Lynch from an Iraqi hospital in a night-time raid, Gen. Tommy Franks watched the entire operation unfold via a live video feed.

The U.S. commander watched as special forces shot their way into the hospital in Nasiriya, found the wounded 19-year-old and shot their way back out again.

...BUT THIS:

Quote:

"It was a classic joint operation done by some of our nation's finest warriors ... loyal to the creed they know that they'll never leave a fallen comrade behind and never embarrass their country," Brigadier-General Vincent Brooks said after the operation.

The commandos also found two bodies in the morgue, possibly from Pte. Lynch's unit. And they were led outside the hospital where they were shown nine freshly dug graves.

"We have reason to believe some of them were Americans," said navy Captain Frank Thorp, a U.S. Central Command spokesman.

The first successful rescue of a U.S. POW from enemy hands since the Second World War came shortly after midnight on Tuesday.

The "extraction" of Pte. Lynch, an Army supply clerk from the 507th Ordnance Maintenance Company, was put in motion after the Central Intelligence Agency received a tip, likely from newly captured Iraqi prisoners, that a badly wounded American was being held in the Saddam Hospital near Nasiriya.

As Army Rangers, Navy SEALs and Air Force pilots flew toward the Saddam Hospital in an unlit Black Hawk, U.S. forces knocked out Nasiriya's power.

In a diversionary tactic launched 15 minutes before the raid, U.S. Marines launched a massive attack against Fedayeen militia in the city. They were backed by Harrier attack jets, which demolished the headquarters of the local Baath Party.

"We weren't trying to take the city but we were attempting to distract them and scare the daylights out of them in order to open the way for the U.S. special forces. It worked perfectly," said Major Mike Tanner, a British commando who helped set up the operation.

The rescue team, wearing night vision goggles and transmitting live video, landed at about 1 a.m. and immediately came under sniper fire as they jumped from the helicopter and raced to the hospital.

The Rangers set up a perimeter to defend the operation, while the SEAL commandos made their way into the building to rescue the captured American. Overhead, an Air Force gunship made sure no Iraqi forces got close.

The hospital had been seized by Iraqi soldiers who transformed it into a military post before the war began. However, most of the fighters had left the hospital.

As soon as the Americans arrived, patients and staff began emerging from the hospital with their hands up.

Inside, commandos covered one another, as they advanced from door to door until they reached the young POW.

Pte. Lynch, from Palestine, W. Va., was coherent enough to give her rescuers a thumb's up. Her rescuers then loaded her on to a stretcher.

When several soldiers emerged carrying Pte. Lynch, they came under fire again but were able to escape without anyone being killed or injured.

"Some brave souls put their lives on the line to carry this out," Gen. Brooks said.

An eerie green night-vision video released by the Pentagon showed Pte. Lynch being rushed to the helicopter which lifted her to safety. Gen. Franks was able to see the whole of the action on a video screen at his headquarters in Qatar, 1,000 kilometres away.

Members of the strike force who stayed behind after Pte. Lynch was evacuated later made the gruesome discovery of the bodies and graves. Forensic tests are being conducted on the bodies to determine whether they were U.S. servicemen.

The rescue team also found Saddam's loyalists had set up an armoury in the hospital basement, with ammunition, mortars and maps.

On hearing news of the successful rescue, George W. Bush, the U.S. President, said, "That's great."

Pte. Lynch, a folded U.S. flag lying on her chest, was later transferred to another aircraft and gave a weak smile as her picture was taken by a military photographer. She arrived at the Landstuhl Medical Centre in Germany yesterday afternoon. She was being treated for broken bones and gunshot wounds and was reported in stable condition.

As for the rescue operation: Well, It must've been really hard, shooting people when rescuing good americans from the evil SADDAM HUSSEIN's hospital.

BeBro · April 3, 2003, 10:06

Well, the rescue thing was confirmed by other sources too...

TheStinger · April 3, 2003, 10:08

The best thing about the rescue was one of her school friends saying the rescue proved without doubt the existence of God

Az · April 3, 2003, 10:09

I don't like the whole "damsel in distress" thing, but yes, that's great!

MRT144 · April 3, 2003, 10:09

actually i think the nixon tapes proved the existence of god, and that god also has a sense of humor

C0ckney · April 3, 2003, 10:10

yep all over the bbc, and most likely everywhere else. christ knows what 'sources' ur's been reading, everywhere here says it was a rescue mission.

great news

BeBro · April 3, 2003, 10:10

Quote:

The best thing about the rescue was one of her school friends saying the rescue proved without doubt the existence of God

Shouldn´t we also cheer about that?

TheStinger · April 3, 2003, 10:12

Quote:

Originally posted by BeBro

Shouldn´t we also cheer about that?

I thought it was ironic that the storming of a town and killing lots of people in the process to rescue 1 person could in any way prove that God existed

Harovan · April 3, 2003, 10:14

On German TV it was called a rescue operation. Since it hardly can be called war-friendly, it must have been really intended and not only "stumbled over". So this message is probably not propaganda.

While I'm glad for the young lady, I have to ask, what makes her so special, that she gets much more attention than the other prisoners of war on both sides? Is it because she is young and cute?

And why are there so many threads open on this issue?

DinoDoc · April 3, 2003, 10:14

Quote:

Pfc. Jessica Lynch, rescued Tuesday from an Iraqi hospital, fought fiercely and shot several enemy soldiers after Iraqi forces ambushed the Army's 507th Ordnance Maintenance Company, firing her weapon until she ran out of ammunition, U.S. officials said yesterday.

Lynch, a 19-year-old supply clerk, continued firing at the Iraqis even after she sustained multiple gunshot wounds and watched several other soldiers in her unit die around her in fighting March 23, one official said. The ambush took place after a 507th convoy, supporting the advancing 3rd Infantry Division, took a wrong turn near the southern city of Nasiriyah.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn...-2003Apr2.html

JohnT · April 3, 2003, 10:21

UR, please, can you show a little bit of empathy for a fellow human being, drop the ideological and nationalistic baggage that weighs upon 'most every friggin' post you have ever made in the OT, and stop trolling for once? It'd be quite the welcome change.

Thanks!

boann · April 3, 2003, 10:25

well if you guys would really read the whole
story you would find out that they went in because
an Iraqi gave information about where she was exactly
located . they also brought out 11 bodies. I'm sure
each one of those would get just as much coverage if they had be alive to rescue....but since she was the only one still alive.

TheStinger · April 3, 2003, 10:29

Quote:

Originally posted by boann
well if you guys would really read the whole
story you would find out that they went in because
an Iraqi gave information about where she was exactly
located . they also brought out 11 bodies. I'm sure
each one of those would get just as much coverage if they had be alive to rescue....but since she was the only one still alive.

I doubt it.

A few yaers ago a number of UK infantry were captured by rebels in Sierra Leonne. In a quite big operation the Paras and SAS got them out. It made the news but the covergae the British TV gave the rescue yesterday exceeded that operation. I'm glad they got her out but I think it has been blown up out of al proprortion.l

JohnT · April 3, 2003, 10:34

Quote:

Originally posted by Sir Ralph
While I'm glad for the young lady, I have to ask, what makes her so special, that she gets much more attention than the other prisoners of war on both sides? Is it because she is young and cute?

DaShi · April 3, 2003, 10:38

Quote:

Originally posted by Urban Ranger
I read somewhere else that she was found, not "rescued."

Of course it is much better than a story of how the US bombed an Iraqi hospital.

Yes, that's a better troll.

Lincoln · April 3, 2003, 10:42

"Hospital" in Iraq is a misnomer. I think they would more correctly be called a military staging area which includes a day-care center and baby formula factory.

TheStinger · April 3, 2003, 10:46

Quote:

Originally posted by Lincoln
"Hospital" in Iraq is a misnomer. I think they would more correctly be called a military staging area which includes a day-care center and baby formula factory.

They probably train puppies there too