Authorities in Iraq continue attempts
to repair a sabotaged oil pipeline, and U.S. authorities confirm a soldier had
shot and killed a television cameraman
by mistake on Sunday.
U.S. authorities in Baghdad said two fires that erupted during the weekend
on the main oil pipeline from Iraq to Turkey, halting exports, will take up
to two weeks to repair. The U.S. military says the incidents are under investigation
and that sabotage is a possible cause.
The pipeline started operating Wednesday for the first time since the war
began, and it managed to run for only two days before the first rupture occurred.
The military also confirmed that a U.S. soldier had shot and killed a Reuters
television cameraman Sunday at a prison outside Baghdad. A spokesman said the
soldier had mistaken the camera for a rocket launcher, despite journalists
having previously asked permission to film the area.
The cameraman, Mazen Dana, was a veteran of working in conflicts, being from
the Palestinian town of Hebron where he worked for Reuters for nearly a decade.
U.S. authorities described the shooting as a tragic accident.
A water pipeline blown up in Baghdad on Sunday cut service to nearly 300,000
people on the north side of the capital. A fountain of water from the pipe
flooded the immediate area, and the local water company said it had to shut
off water to the entire city for a time to isolate the damaged section.
The pipe was reported to have been repaired Monday, although many residents
in the area affected said they were still without water.
Efforts to export Iraqi crude have been hampered by outdated equipment and
repeated sabotage by guerrillas said to be loyal to the regime of deposed leader
Saddam Hussein.
U.S. forces and the appointed Iraqi governing council have tried to speed
up the repair of pipelines, to generate the income needed to help rebuild the
country.