BAGHDAD (AP) Ñ The U.S. military is bracing for a major scandal over the alleged slaying of Iraqi civilians by Marines in Haditha Ñ charges so serious they could threaten President Bush’s effort to rally support at home for an increasingly unpopular war.

And while the case has attracted little attention so far in Iraq, it still could enflame hostility to the U.S. presence just as Iraq’s new government is getting established, and complicate efforts by moderate Sunni Arab leaders to reach out to their community Ñ the bedrock of the insurgency.
usatoday.com

Iraqis numb to killings probe that shocks US
BAGHDAD (Reuters) – Word that U.S. Marines may have killed two dozen Iraqi civilians in “cold-blooded” revenge after an insurgent attack has shocked Americans but many Iraqis shrug it off as an every day fact of life under occupation.

Despite U.S. military denials, many Iraqis believe killing of men, women and children at the hands of careless or angry American soldiers is common. No reliable statistics are available.

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