BAGHDAD — A U.S. helicopter strike north of Baghdad killed eight people in a vehicle, including at least two children, Iraqi officials said Thursday, insisting all the dead were civilians. The U.S. military said six were al-Qaeda militants but acknowledged children were killed.
News footage showed the bodies of three children in blood-drenched clothes — the eldest appearing to be in his early teens — along with the bodies of five men, at the hospital in Baiji, where the dead were taken after Wednesday evening’s strike.
Iraqi and U.S. officials each put the number of slain children at two. The reason for the discrepancies between the two accounts and the TV footage was not known.
It was the latest incident threatening to alienate Sunni Arabs, who have played a key role in the steep decline in violence over the past year by joining forces with the Americans against al-Qaeda in Iraq. Baiji, an oil hub 155 miles north of Baghdad, lies in a largely Sunni Arab area.
The strike came as the U.S. was trying to ease Iraqi anger over the shooting of a copy of the Koran by an American sniper, who used Islam’s holy book for target practice.
In Afghanistan on Thursday, a NATO soldier and two demonstrators were killed at a violent protest over the Koran shooting.
Iraq has not seen any street protests over the Koran shooting, which took place earlier this month in a Sunni area west of Baghdad. But Iraqi leaders have denounced the act, prompting apologies from U.S. military commanders and President Bush. The U.S. military says the sniper was disciplined and removed from Iraq.
In the attack near Baiji, the military said its forces were targeting members of an al-Qaeda suicide-bombing network. The forces engaged the occupants of a vehicle after they refused to surrender and “exhibited hostile intent.” It said five suspected “terrorists” were killed along with two children in the vehicle. A sixth militant was killed in a field next to the road, according to a statement.
Baiji police Col. Mudhher al-Qaisi, however, said the dead were six civilian farmers and two children who were fleeing in their vehicle from the area after U.S. forces launched their raids.
He said a U.S. helicopter crew became suspicious of their vehicle and opened fire on it.
“The residents feel angry now over this act by the American troops. The victims were unarmed and work as farmers,” al-Qaisi said.
Mohammed al-Shimmari, who lives in the area, said the raid took place when a group of his relatives gathered at the home of his cousin after hearing he would be released soon from U.S. custody. He said the Americans were holding the cousin on suspicion of insurgent ties.
When U.S. forces launched a raid on the cousin’s house, those inside fled. They included the group of eight in a minibus, which was then struck by the helicopter, said al-Shimmari, who lives near his cousin.
