U.S. Military’s Use of Mercenaries in Iraq

Those Iraqis who killed Americans and then mutilated the bodies are criminals who deserve to pay for their crimes, but reports of heavily armed ex-SEALS and Rangers working as civilian personnel for the U.S. in Iraq are also of concern (April 1-2). Combatant nonmilitary employees exist in a legal never-never land, not subject to military law or Iraqi civil law. If they have a “special” relationship with the military but make many times the salaries of soldiers, the question must be asked: Why aren’t sworn soldiers doing these jobs?

If heavily armed Iraqi civilians appear on the streets of Baghdad or in Afghanistan, they are labeled “terrorists” and may be killed. To an anti-American fundamentalist, the presence of these “mercenary-terrorists” provides fodder for their hate messages. America would be better off if we kept the moral high ground and avoided bending the rules.

Jim Corbett

San Clemente

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As disgusting as the atrocity was in Fallouja, calling the four contractors civilians paints a grossly inaccurate picture of the event. They were armed mercenaries in a war zone. It is a sad state of affairs, however, that their deaths would probably not be reported in The Times at all if it were not for the way their bodies were treated.

Mercenaries seem to be used by the U.S. government because their demise won’t have the same political cost the growing U.S. military death toll does. Nobody counts the number of dead mercenaries enforcing the occupation of Iraq. There is even less concern for the way they conduct themselves in the occupation; the military has rules and mercenaries do not.

Ahmed Shaikh

Los Angeles

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Re “U.S. Vows to Find Killers,” April 2: President Bush can’t find Osama, he can’t find any weapons of mass destruction -- no, George, they are not under your desk -- and now the military vows to find the killers of four Americans out of a mob of Iraqi insurgents?

Would somebody please find something?

The death toll is rising and we have nothing to show for it. It will dishonor the future Americans who are going to be killed in Iraq to “stay the course.” This ought to be good.

Gil Frazee

Upland

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As a dedicated Times reader for many years, I am disappointed that you printed the pictures of the nonmilitary contract workers hanging from the bridge in Fallouja (April 1). Unfortunately, this is very personal to me since a member of my family in the military was killed by a bomb in a vehicle in Fallouja just 12 hours before the terrible events depicted in the photo you published.

Thank God my nephew was not subjected to the same fate as those poor people. Yes, he is just as dead as they are, but at least our family was spared the pictures of him in his bombed-out vehicle. I know that the public is entitled to the news, but I had hoped that The Times was above publishing the pictures of that atrocity, which is just what the terrorists want us to see.

Suzanne Cote

Tustin

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Even after the new Spanish government announced its intention to pull out of Iraq, the terrorists tried another train bombing on Friday. It just proves that there is no use trying to mollify these people and that the Israeli government has the right approach.

Marshall Giller

Winnetka