Zarqawi autopsy: No signs of a beating

Well. LauraW primed the pump, I'll add some more.

Zarqawi was alive and suffering from internal injuries when coalition forces arrived on the scene of the bombing.

The official cause of death? Internal injuries to the lungs secondary to the blast waves from the bomb.

According to the timeline, the first bomb dropped at about 6:12 p.m. Baghdad time and the first American troops were on the scene about 6:40 p.m. A U.S. medic began treating Zarqawi on the scene as other military members attempted to identify him, Maj. Gen. Bill Caldwell said. The terror leader's breath was "shallow and labored" as his pulse faded, Caldwell said, with death coming at 7:04 p.m.

A Saturday autopsy found Zarqawi had died of internal injuries, with "death occurring as lung functioning deteriorated," officials said. The blast waves of the explosions caused tearing and bruising of the lungs and bleeding, all injuries visible only internally, they said. The nature of the injuries, they said, also led them to believe Zarqawi had been inside the house at the time of the airstrike. A medical examiner said Zarqawi had been fit but heavy before his death.

The bomb scored a more direct hit to Zarqawi's "spiritual advisor", perhaps a sign that God was none-too-happy with the type of spiritual advising he was doing:

An autopsy on Sheik Abdul-Rahman al-Iraqi, Zarqawi's spiritual adviser, found different injuries, they said. His injuries, including major head bleeding, were more severe than Zarqawi's and resulted in instantaneous death, they said.

To hear Major General William Caldwell's statement, click here.

Allah compares wildly different newspaper accounts of Iraqi witness Ali Abbas' statements which range from a beating to offering him a bottle of water while interrogating.

Additionally, al-Qaeda has named some dude called Abu Hamza al-Muhajer ("al-Muhajer" meaning "the immigrant") as its new Iraqi leader. Nobody has ever heard of the guy, but industry insiders claim he has jihad experience and good references. Or something.

Guest blogger Feisty blogs at Feisty Republican Whore.

posted by Feisty at 10:48 AM

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