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Photos of U.S. Coffins From Iraq Appear Despite Ban

HeadlineApr 23, 2004

For the first time since the invasion of Iraq began, photos of flag-drapped coffins returning from Iraq have begun appearing in the press. The Pentagon enacted a ban on such photos on the eve of the invasion.

On Sunday the Seattle Times ran a photo of caskets that was taken in Kuwait by an employee of the military contractor Maytag Aircraft. The worker who took the photo and her husband have since been fired after the Pentagon complained to Maytag.

And now some 350 photos of flag-draped caskets that were taken by the military have appeared on the internet. The website, the memory hole dot org, received the photos from the Air Force after filing a request via the Freedom of Information Act. The photos are appearing on the front covers of newspapers across the country today, including the New York Times, Washington Post, Los Angeles Times and Boston Globe. According to the New York TImes, all of the major TV news channel ran photos as well, with one exception — Fox News.

Meanwhile the Defense Department has ordered no more such photos be released.

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