Jessica Lynch

Jessica Lynch (born April 26, 1983) in Palestine, West Virginia. Lynch, a Quartermaster Corps Private First Class (PFC) in the United States Army, was a prisoner of war of the Iraqi military in the 2003 invasion of Iraq who was rescued by United States forces on April 1, 2003. Lynch's rescue was the first of an American POW since World War II and the first ever of a woman.

Lynch's criticism

Months after returning, Lynch finally began speaking to the public. Her statements, however, tended to be sharply critical of the original story being presented by the Pentagon. When asked about her hero status, "That wasn't me. I'm not about to take credit for something I didn't do ... I'm just a survivor."

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

She denied the claims that she fought until being wounded, reporting that her weapon jammed immediately, and that she couldn't have done anything anyway. Interviewed with Diane Sawyer, Lynch stated, concerning the Pentagon: "They used me to symbolize all this stuff. It's wrong. I don't know why they filmed or why they say these things". She also stated "I did not shoot, not a round, nothing. I went down praying to my knees. And that's the last I remember." She reported excellent treatment in Iraq, and that one person in the hospital even sang to her to help her feel at home.

Related Topics:
Diane Sawyer - The Pentagon

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

An NBC TV movie depicting Lynch's ambush and rescue, Saving Jessica Lynch, was aired in the U.S. on November 9, 2003, starring Laura Regan as Lynch. In an interview published in the August 15, 2005 Time magazine, Lynch stated that she saw some of it, but that the inaccuracies in it so upset her that she didn't not watch all of it. She added that she may watch the entire film some day.

Related Topics:
NBC - TV movie - U.S. - November - Time

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~