An Iraqi insurgent group says it shot
down a commercial helicopter that crashed near Baghdad on Thursday -
and that it shot dead the only survivor. The Islamic Army posted a
video on the internet purporting to show the wreckage, and the
shooting. Eleven people died in the crash - six US security
contractors, three Bulgarian crew and two Fijian guards. A statement
said the survivor was shot in revenge for "the murder of Muslims in the
mosques of Falluja". US and Bulgarian officials have confirmed the
helicopter was lost about 20km (12 miles) north of the Iraqi capital on
Thursday. The cameraman focuses on two bodies. One appears to be dead
and is badly charred. The second person, wearing a blue flight suit, is
alive but badly hurt. The cameraman orders him to stand up, but the
survivor says he has a broken leg and asks for help. The militants
appear to help him up, and tell him to run away. Then they shoot him at
point blank range and he collapses. They continue to shoot the body,
shouting "Allahu Akbar" (God is Great). A statement on the internet
accompanying the video read: "The Islamic Army in Iraq claims
responsibility for bringing down a... cargo aircraft and killing all
those on board." It said the killing was revenge for the murder of
Muslims in Falluja - an apparent reference to a video showing a US
soldier shooting dead a wounded Iraqi in a mosque in November. [more]