Gunmen shouting "God is Great" dragged what appeared to be the burning body of a US pilot in a horrific video posted on Wednesday on the Web by a new al-Qaeda-affiliated group that claimed it shot down an Apache helicopter last weekend.
The US military expressed outrage over the release of "such a despicable video for public exposure," but said it could not confirm the authenticity. The date stamp on the video was Sunday, April 2, a day after the AH-64D Apache Longbow attack helicopter was downed southwest of Baghdad, killing the two pilots.
Lieutenant Colonel Barry Johnson, a spokesman for the US command, said the wreckage shown on the video "does appear to be an AH-64," but added that other helicopters of that type have been lost.
"We have serious doubts about the authenticity of this video, a common tactic we see terrorist groups use to keep the stories they want alive in the media," he said.
A US statement said troops had recovered "all available remains" although "reports of a Web site video suggest that terrorists removed part of a body from the crash site," near Youssifiyah, about 20km southwest of Baghdad.
"We are outraged that anyone would create and publish such a despicable video for public exposure," Lieutenant Colonel Jonathan Withington, a US spokesman, said. "Terrorists continue to demonstrate their immoral disregard for human dignity and life."
Although the images were blurry, the flaming wreckage of a helicopter could be seen clearly, including outlines of the aircraft's blades and jagged pieces of wreckage strewn over a field.
The camera panned over bloodstained wreckage, then showed several men dragging the burning body of a man across a field as they shouted "Allahu Akbar," or "God is Great" in celebration. Voices could be heard in the background shouting "come, come, help me carry it."
The body's face was not visible, but the camera zoomed in on what appeared to be his waistline, which showed a scrap of underwear with the brand name "Hanes" on it.
It appeared the man was wearing tattered digital camouflage fatigues, which are worn by US troops in Iraq.
In Alexandria, Virginia, Ben Venzke, head of IntelCenter, a defense contractor which monitors militant statements, said it appeared on first viewing that the tape was authentic.
He also said the discrepancy on the times could be simply a technical error in the setting.
"Based on an initial review of the footage, it would seem to indicate the downing of a helicopter and the removal of crew and passengers from the craft," he said. "On an initial review, it does appear to be what it purports to be."
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