posted on April 13, 2003 07:17:47 AM new
BAGHDAD, Iraq (CNN) -- Six or seven U.S. soldiers have been located and are apparently in good health, Gen. Tommy Franks, commander in chief of U.S. Central Command, said Sunday.
posted on April 13, 2003 07:20:22 AM new
TERRIFIC NEWS!!!!!
"Be kind. Remember everyone you meet is fighting a hard battle." - Harry Thompson
"I have neither the time nor the inclination to explain myself to a man who rises and sleeps under the blanket of the very freedom I provide and then questions the manner in which I provide it." - A Few Good Men
posted on April 13, 2003 08:25:40 AM new
I woke up during the middle of the announcement this morning. I can't imagine the joy and relief of their families. After the finding of their bloodied uniforms and the acknowledgment that the quick fall of Bagdahd left the US troops with no idea where the POWs were or even how to find those that would their chances were looking slim. What a wonderful way to start the day.
posted on April 13, 2003 08:37:44 AM new
Here is the story.....
NEAR KUT, Iraq (April 13) - Iraqi troops released seven captured U.S. soldiers - some wounded but in good condition - to Marines on Sunday, a surprise discovery near where U.S. troops were entering Saddam Hussein's hometown of Tikrit.
Clad in an assortment of pajamas and shorts, the soldiers clambered out of helicopters to a delighted welcome at an air base in southern Iraq, hours after their release.
The seven were taken by helicopter to this base near Kut and transferred to C-130s for a flight to Kuwait.
They ``are in good shape,'' although two have gunshot wounds, Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld said.
Ronald Young Sr. identified one of the Americans in shaky video shown by CNN as his son, Chief Warrant Officer Ronald D. Young Jr., who was listed as a POW after his Apache helicopter was forced down March 23.
``It's him, and I'm just so happy that I could kiss the world!'' the elder Young said from Lithia, Ga. ``It's him! It's definitely him.''
Family members identified the other Americans as Chief Warrant Officer David S. Williams, 30, of Orlando, Fla., who was in the Apache with Young; and Army Spc. Shoshana Johnson, 30, Fort Bliss, Texas, Army Sgt. James Riley, 31, Pennsauken, N.J., Army Spc. Joseph Hudson, 23, Alamogordo, N.M., and Army Pfc. Patrick Miller, 23, Park City, Kan. - all members of the 507th Ordnance Maintenance Company who were ambushed March 23.
The six had been listed as POWs.
The other soldier was not immediately identified, and the Pentagon was in the process of notifying families.
One of the men raised his fist in the air as he strode from the helicopter and smiled slightly. Another limped, apparently with an injured right ankle.
``They look to be in pretty good condition ... all giving the thumbs up,'' said Col. Larry Brown, operations officer for the 1st Marine Expeditionary Force.
Some wore blue-and-white striped pajamas, another was in blue shorts. Marines at this base came forward to applaud and pat them on the back.
Capt. David Romley said Marines marching north toward Tikrit were met by Iraqi soldiers north of Samarra who approached the 3rd Light Armored Reconnaissance Company, and the seven Americans were with them.
Another spokesman for the 1st Marine Expeditionary Force, Capt. Neil Murphy, said the Iraqi soldiers who had brought the Americans had been abandoned by their officers and ``realizing that it was the right thing to do, they brought these guys back.''
``We go to every effort to recover any of the Marines or any of our soldiers taken captive,'' Romley said.
Rumsfeld said Iraqis told U.S. troops that they would find the seven missing soldiers at a location about four or five miles south of Tikrit. ``They said, 'You should go get them,' and they did,'' Rumsfeld said.
When Marine combat headquarters got news that the missing had been found, the troops applauded - a rare thing to happen in combat operations, Murphy said.
``You could feel the happiness and excitement in the combat operations center,'' he said.
posted on April 13, 2003 08:45:14 AM new
Thank God!
It's great that the Iraqi soldiers knew what the right thing to do was. They must have been absent on brainwashing day . . .
posted on April 13, 2003 09:00:49 AM new
From what I heard it was an Iraqi policeman who met the marines and told them about the pow's. This was a total fluke as the marines where there doing a recon on the town of tikrat.
The Iraqi army officers fled leaving just some lowly troops behind who had no idea what to do now. Good thing they where smart enough to just say to hell with this and turned the pow's over. They had enough problems without adding more to them.
Its great that this turned out so well as the pow's familys can now relax and not have to worry about the fate of their loved ones.
- Harry Thompson