Troops cleared in March Iraqi civilian deaths

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – A U.S. military probe has exonerated
U.S. troops in the deaths of Iraqi civilians in Ishaqi north of
Baghdad in March, finding American forces followed standard
procedures and committed no misconduct, defense officials said
on Friday.

Police in the town 60 miles north of Baghdad, have said six
adults and five children were shot dead in a U.S. military raid
on a home on March 15.

But the U.S. military maintained that there were four dead
in the incident, including a guerrilla, two women and a child,
and they died after troops were fired upon from the house as
they arrived to arrest an al Qaeda suspect. The defense
officials, speaking on condition of anonymity, said an
investigation found no wrongdoing by U.S. forces.