Wikileaks: Classified video of the killing of Reuters photographer, Namir Noor-Eldeen

Wikileaks has obtained and decrypted this previously unreleased video footage from a US Apache helicopter in 2007. It shows Reuters journalist Namir Noor-Eldeen, driver Saeed Chmagh, and several others as the Apache shoots and kills them in a public square in Eastern Baghdad. They are apparently assumed to be insurgents. After the initial shooting, an unarmed group of adults and children in a minivan arrives on the scene and attempts to transport the wounded. They are fired upon as well. The official statement on this incident initially listed all adults as insurgents and claimed the US military did not know how the deaths ocurred. Wikileaks released this video with transcripts and a package of supporting documents on April 5th 2010 on http://collateralmurder.com.

Namir Noor-Eldeen was 22-years-old when he was killed. It is true, in war, accidents will happen. What follows however, shouldn't have been a bending of the truth -- or just plain lies. In this case, it's hard to assess whether this was an accident or deliberate. The crews from the Apache helicopters claim to see AK-47s and an RPG, but it's never clear if there is any. If they could see weapons, they would have also seen Noor-Eldeen carrying a large, professional-grade camera. That should have immediately questioned their assessment of the group as being insurgents. Further, to get the OK to engage, the gunship crew claims there is shooting on the ground -- but the video clearly shows there is none. In fact, the men in the video appear to just be standing around -- even though there is two Apache gunships orbiting their location. After the initial firing, a van pulls up, and a few people started loading the bodies into the van. Without any provocation, the Apaches open fire, killing the adults and wounding two children who were sitting in the van.

A further assessment of the video can be found here.

With this latest revelation, the ball is now in the Americans' court. How the government responds to the evidence will say a lot of whether America has moved beyond the torture years, to again be a respectable global citizen. If America doesn't respond with moral fortitude, then it loses its right to criticize the same behaviour, elsewhere.

Don't disappoint us, America.

Updated: Here's a quick look at how the news was being reported.

Another update: The Vancouver Sun has a full transcript of the video.