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X. THE INVESTIGATION

Col. Bray informed Human Rights Watch that, in compliance with U.S. Army procedure, commanders performed an After Action Review (AAR) following the incidents in al-Falluja. In addition, he conducted a higher-level Commander's Inquiry into the events. The report made it to "the highest levels," he said. He was not able to provide Human Rights Watch with a copy of the report, because higher approval was required. Human Rights Watch submitted a Freedom of Information Act Request to the U.S. Army to obtain the AAR and Commander's Inquiry, but had not received response at the time of writing. The Commander's Inquiry is a low- to mid-level investigation, not as high, for example, as an Army Regulation 15-6.74

A task force was sent to al-Falluja to investigate, although it is not clear if this was part of the Commander's Inquiry. According to one U.S. officer in al-Falluja, who asked not to be identified, the task force is focusing on identifying the hostile elements among the al-Falluja population rather than the response of U.S. soldiers. The soldiers in the school "thought they were being fired upon, so they fired back," this officer said.75

Human Rights Watch also had informal discussions with other officers in the area, including some responsible for intelligence. Based on their information, they said, there were extremists in al-Falluja who paid people to take part in anti-American demonstrations, although they did not provide details.

Although al-Falluja's mayor agreed with this analysis, he also called for a full investigation. The local government, some imams, and U.S. soldiers met to discuss the incidents, he said, but mostly on how to calm the situation down.

Human Rights Watch believes that the information provided by U.S. officers in al-Falluja regarding the scope and focus of the Commander's Inquiry, as well as the April 29 statement by U.S. Central Command headquarters asserting that U.S. troops had been fired on by twenty-five armed individuals amid the demonstrators and on rooftops, underscores the need for a thorough, independent, and impartial investigation into these incidents. If the required investigation is carried out by U.S. military authorities, it should be by a body that is fully independent and has no links to those units implicated in the incidents or previous investigation, including the 82nd Airborne Division and the Central Command.

74 For information on the Army Regulation 15-6, see:
www.wood.army.mil/sja/ADLAW/army_regulation_15.htm#PURPOSE

75 Human Rights Watch interview with U.S. army officer, al-Falluja, May 5, 2003.

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