Wounded lawyer recalls horror of last weekend's Blackwater shootings
By BUSHRA JUHI | Associated Press

BAGHDAD — Lawyer Hassan Jabir was stuck in traffic when he heard Blackwater USA security contractors shout "Go, Go, Go." Moments later bullets pierced his back, he said Thursday from his hospital bed.

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"No one fired at them," Jabir said of the Blackwater guards. "No one attacked them but they randomly fired at people. So many people died in the street."

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"After 20 minutes, the Americans told us to turn back," he said. "They shouted 'Go' 'Go' 'Go.'... When we started turning back, the Americans began shooting heavily at us. The traffic policeman was the first person killed."

The shooting set off a panic, Jabir said, with men, women and children diving from their vehicles, trying desperately to crawl to safety.

"But many of them were killed," he said. "I saw a 10-year-old boy jump in fear from one of the minibuses. He was shot in his head. His mother jumped after him and was also killed."

Suddenly, Jabir felt two bullets strike his back — one pierced his left lung and the other lodged in his intestines.

"I kept on driving my car because if I left it, I would die," he said. "Then I was hit with two other bullets, one in my right hand and the second in my right shoulder just under the neck. ... I was rescued by Iraqi special forces" who rushed to the area. "I swear to God that they were not exposed to any fire," Jabir said of the Blackwater guards. "They are criminals and thirst for blood."...[Open in new window]