Wednesday, December 12, 2007

NBC broadcasts 'heroic rescue' of Polish ambassador


NBC's Richard Engels reported from Baghdad October 3 on Blackwater's rescue of Poland's ambassador to Iraq. Anchor Brian Williams notes what he calls the company's "heroic rescue" of Ambassador Edward Pietrzyk, saying, "Turns out the ambassador was evacuated to safety by a helicopter operated by Blackwater USA."

Engels noted an irony that one group of Blackwater guards was under investigation for the September 16 Nisoor Square incident while another group was being celebrated as heroes. He recounted the triple IED attack on the ambassador's convoy, followed by an ambush on the burning vehicles with automatic weapons. The ambassador's driver was killed and others in his entourage, including his guards, were wounded. The Polish diplomat himself escaped but was burned so badly that he could not walk on his own.

"Then," Engels reports, "it was Blackwater in their Little Bird helicopter that was able to enter this area, extricate the ambassador, and medevac him to the Green Zone where he was taken to a US military hospital. . . ."

Here's the link to the video: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/21134540/vp/21120977#21120977