US chief apologises for 'friendly fire' incidents
The chairman of the US Joint Chiefs of Staff, General Richard Myers, has
apologised for "friendly fire" incidents in the Iraqi conflict.
Wounded British soldiers have described their anger at being attacked by a
US warplane.
On Saturday, one member of the Royal Household cavalry was killed, and
several injured when their unit came under fire from an American A-10 tank
buster.
Survivors of that incident say the pilot was a cowboy and there was no
excuse for him mistaking them for the enemy.
General Myers says every effort is made to avoid friendly fire accidents.
"I suppose in the middle of war, which is by nature a very chaotic event at
certain times on the battle field that those things happen," he said.
The Australian Army has charged several members, including a sergeant, with
drug abuse.
It comes after an extensive investigation by its military police division.
The Army's official newspaper has reported on the investigation, but does
not reveal which soldiers are involved, where they are from and how many
have been charged.
But it does quote a sergeant who is about to be discharged for using
illegal substances, including steroids, cannabis and amphetamines.
The sergeant says steroid abuse is a lot more widespread within the
infantry than in most other corps.
He also says there are a number of soldiers he has known over the years who
have died as a result of drug abuse.
The US military says a man wearing civilian clothes has driven a truck into
a group of US soldiers as they stood in line outside a store, injuring 15
of them.
Soldiers nearby opened fire on the truck driver, who was described as being
"a third country national", shooting him in the upper chest and shoulder.
"He is in critical condition after surgery," a military statement said.
One of the soldiers hit by the truck will have to be flown to Germany for
treatment to an injured knee. The other 14 were only slightly hurt by the
impact and have returned to duty.
The truck drove into the group of 5th Corps soldiers at around 1:00pm local
time (8:00pm yesterday AEST) near Camp Udairi north of Kuwait City.
A worker in the camp told Reuters he had heard the sound of shooting and
said the alleged attacker and an accomplice were whisked away in an ambulance.
Egyptian immigrant workers who had been working nearby were made to lie on
the ground and were questioned.
Qatar-based satellite television Al Jazeera later interviewed Abdul Razzak
Al Shayji, a spokesman for the radical Islamist Al Salafiah Movement in
Kuwait, who said the driver worked at the US base and had had a "personal
disagreement".
The attack was the first on a US military base in Kuwait since hand
grenades were thrown into tents at a US camp earlier this month, killing
two soldiers and wounding several.
A US soldier was arrested in connection with that incident.
Kuwait was the main launchpad for the March 20 invasion of neighbouring
Iraq by US and British forces, and still hosts thousands of servicemen and
women from both countries.
US-led forces are on high alert for this kind of attack after an Iraqi
suicide bomber detonated a car bomb at a military checkpoint near the
central Iraqi city of Najaf on Saturday, killing four soldiers.
