Prometheus 6

Chessani said he had concluded that insurgents had staged a "complex attack" that began with a roadside bomb, followed by a small-arms ambush intended to provoke the Marines to fire into houses where civilians were hiding.

Because of that conclusion, he said, he saw no reason to investigate, or ask how many women and children had been killed.

Marine officer saw Haditha deaths as normal: Post
Sat Aug 19, 2006 1:26 AM ET

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. Marine officer who commanded the battalion involved in the deaths of two dozen Iraqi civilians in Haditha in November did not consider the incident unusual and did not initiate an inquiry, The Washington Post reported on Saturday.