Canadian an American Officials In Dispute Over Details

Canadians are disputing the U.S. version of an incident in Iraq that saw American soldiers fire shots at a car carrying four Canadian diplomats in Baghdad.

No one was injured, but the two sides differ on what prompted the volley of shots.

A U.S. military spokesperson in Iraq claims American soldiers "felt threatened" that the car might represent a potential suicide-bomb attack after the vehicle came too close and ignored hand and arm signals to keep a safe distance away.

"They felt they had to use warning shots," said U.S. Lt.-Col. Barry Johnson, spokesman for the multinational force in Baghdad.

"Clearly, these warning shots weren't aimed at the occupants."

A statement from the country’s military said the shots were aimed "at the front of the vehicle, away from the passenger area."

But Canadian officials argue that one shot did enter the passenger compartment and others struck the vehicle.

They also claim that the car did keep a safe distance away from the convoy and that they didn’t see any warning signals.

"Our officials are clear that they were operating within the rules," prime minister-designate Stephen Harper said in Ottawa.

"Obviously, we'd like to make sure we deal with this and avoid such a situation in the future. We're obviously very glad no one was hurt."

Gen. Rick Hillier, Canada’s chief of defence staff, has contacted U.S. authorities with concerns over the chain of events.

The vehicle was carrying the charge d'affaires to Iraq, Stewart Henderson, consular offical Michelle Cameron, an unidentified agent with Canada's spy service and another official, plus the driver.

They were on a routine trip through the Green Zone, a highly militarized part of Baghdad that includes the headquarters of the U.S. military and houses the Iraqi government and diplomats, when the bullets began to fly.

No apology has come from the U.S. yet, as it continues to investigate what happened.

"Nobody, our soldiers and our security personnel, certainly don't want to fire on innocent people, certainly not close friends and allies, said U.S. State Department spokesman Sean McCormack.

Canada has a small diplomatic presence in Iraq at this point, but plans to establish an embassy there by the summer.

It will be interesting to see how the Americans will try to get out of this one without an adequate explanation or even an apology. Maybe the Canadians should be required to belt out "I am Canadian!" as they pass through the blocquade. Just my oppinion.

Later,
Kenaz