How not to get the Story (Part 7,000)

So the AP puts out this story:

Gunmen Release 42 Students in Iraq
2 days ago

BAGHDAD (AP) — Iraqi police say gunmen have released the 42 college students they kidnapped earlier in the day near the northern city of Mosul.

Brig. Gen. Khalif Abdul-Sattar says the gunmen initially released the only two girls aboard the hijacked bus. They later set free remaining occupants after making sure they were not members of the security forces.

The bus carrying the students was ambushed Sunday morning on the main highway linking Mosul with Baghdad.

Abdul-Sattar says another bus carrying students managed to evade the ambush. Three students aboard that vehicle were injured when gunmen opened fire as the driver sped away.

Mosul is located 225 miles northwest of Baghdad.

THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. Check back soon for further information. AP's earlier story is below.

BAGHDAD (AP) — Gunmen ambushed a bus filled with college students on the main highway linking Mosul and Baghdad early Sunday, kidnapping 42 people, authorities said.

Meanwhile, overnight clashes in Baghdad's Shiite district of Sadar City left five dead and more than a dozen wounded, police said.

The incidents illustrate the continuing instability in Iraq as the top U.S. officials here prepare to brief the U.S. Congress this week on prospects for further reductions in the 155,000-strong American force.

Juan Cole included it as part of a collection of mainstream media stories detailing how the insurgents are kicking our asses

Up in Mosul, over 200 miles to the north of Baghdad, guerrillas kidnapped, then released, a bus load of 42 college students on Sunday. If guerrillas can do such a thing with impunity in broad daylight, there can't be much security in the Mosul area.

Credit Cole for publishing this the next day:

With regard to the kidnapping of 42 students from a bus near Mosul, who were later released, I received this from a US military observer in the area:

'Mr. Cole,
You should check your sources closer before you report on the "impunity" of the insugents to operate in the Mosul area. My unit was involved in the location of the college students mentioned in your blog. They were not released by the insurgents at their leisure. They were found by coalition forces, engaged to disable the dump truck that the students were being transported and then freed by combined coalition, Iraqi Army and police forces. The four individuals that were driving the dump truck were all detained by Iraqi Army and police units after firing at U.S. helicopters and then hiding among women and children to avoid being fired upon. I know these items are facts as the operation occured a mere three hours after I completed my mission for the day and was briefed by the aircrews that were responsible for the capture. Please know that everyday we see dispicable acts that are perpetrated upon the Iraqi people in the name of the "insurgency". They dare not engage directly because they have learned of the swift and deadly consequences that will occur to them if they do. Also realize that I see the Iraqi security forces taking a larger role in every operation that we conduct here in Ninevah provence of which Mosul is a part. I know that the axiom "if it bleeds it leads" is more true now than ever, but yesterday was a win in the books for the Iraqis and the coalition. Yesterday yielded 42 students that are home with their families, 4 bad guys that are not on the streets, and not a single bystander hurt by coalition or Iraqi forces alike. That is a good news story, not a bullet to show how impotent we are to what is occurring on the ground. '

It is great to have some background on the way the release was accomplished, information that was to my knowledge not reported in the wire services. And it was certainly good news that the students were released. But I didn't say the US military was impotent; what I said was that if people can be kidnapped like that in broad daylight, security can't be very good. And while it is welcome that security was restored for these victims, it still seems like a high crime area. . .

What I can't understand is why I don't get more letters like this one. I take eyewitness accounts seriously. I'm a classic political liberal and I think the maximization of information is intrinsically good for a republic.

Because who has time to spend two seconds looking for MNF-I press releases to get their side of a story? (Hint: not the AP)

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
RELEASE No. 20080406-04
April 6, 2008

Iraqi Security Forces rescue 42 kidnapped students

MOSUL, Iraq – The Iraqi Army rescued 42 college students after they were kidnapped by insurgents in southwestern Mosul April 6.

The Iraqi Army detained one suspect, and Iraqi Police are currently searching for additional suspects.

After Iraqi Security Forces reported the kidnapping, a Coalition force aircraft spotted a suspicious vehicle thought to contain the students. The insurgents fled the scene after the vehicle was stopped.

Some of the students left the area but were picked up by Iraqi Security Forces while others made their way a nearby Iraqi Security Forces combat outpost.

All 42 students are accounted for and are safe.

The Iraqi Army detained one of the insurgents at a nearby house. Iraqi and Coalition forces continue to search for others individuals involved in the kidnapping.

“Today’s efforts by the Iraqi Security Forces display not only their commitment to tracking down insurgents, but also their ability to secure the future of Iraq,” said Maj. Gary Dangerfield, 3rd Armored Cavalry Regiment spokesperson.

The incident is under investigation by the Iraqi Security Forces.

Imagine that.

Update: Via comments below, looks like the AP could have rounded out their story if they had checked with (pauses for dramatic effect)...

...The AP!:

AP photojournalists Evan Vucci and Maya Alleruzo are on scene when U.S. and Iraqi forces rescue a group of Mosul University students who were taken hostage.

What is with bogus bus stories from Iraq these days?