CNN.com | U.S. sorry over Italian hostage shooting

"U.S. President George W. Bush has phoned the Italian prime minister to express his regrets after American troops opened fire on a car carrying a freed hostage, killing one of her bodyguards.

Bush's call came after Silvio Berlusconi demanded the U.S. ambassador to Italy explain what happened. U.S. military officials said the incident is being investigated.

Italian secret service agent Nicola Calipari was killed when he tried to shield 56-year-old former hostage Giuliana Sgrena from gunfire as they approached a military checkpoint near the airport in Baghdad.

Calipari, who has worked to release other Italian hostages, died when he threw himself over Sgrena to protect her."

This is hardly a unique or isolated incident. The number of killings of Iraqi families in cars that have made the news is countless -- and is probably a thin proportion of the real number of such incidents. Remember: no press was in Fallujah. We don't know what happened there, although the few stories to get out are horrifying.

Eason Jordan was fired from CNN for suggesting that the US Army targetted reporters. Many reporters have been killed in Iraq by US forces, including these (1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8).

Perhaps it is not so much that reporters are targetted but that anything that moves is targetted. Shoot 'em up and let Allah sort 'em out!

This strategy clearly backfires for all intents and purposes. Since Iraq, the US is renowned for being a ruthless, reckless killer, at least outside the US. Insurgents feel justified in their bombings because they are attacking the great Satan. Nothing gets better.

But no apologies arise unless, oh my, a "friend" is hurt. In this case, the "friend" was Italy. An Italian secret service member was killed while saving the Italian reporter who had just been released as a hostage. We are given to understand that being a hostage is perhaps "safer" than being at the business end of US Army weapons.

Hostility to the Berlusconi government is on the rise in Italy and this case will certainly bring on more heat. We may soon witness in Italy a reenactment of the Spanish regime change. Keep it up Bubba Bush, you will have alienated your administration from the entire world!