Iraq: the Destructioning.

The papers are all a-flutter with a curious story out of Iraq: seems that two British soldiers (presumed to be SAS) were arrested by Iraqi police. The two men were in plainclothes (traditional Arab dress, actually) and, according to witnesses, got into a shooting match with an Iraqi patrol. Both men were arrested and taken into custody. Now get this: the British military, after having some problems identifying exactly where the men were being held and then failing to negotiate their release, decided the sanest move was to smash through the jail wall with a tank. The Bruckheimer-esque rescue did succeed in freeing the two british soldiers... and about 150 other captives. Two Iraqis were killed in the subseqent rioting.

Now, I have to ask: if everything we're hearing from coalition spokespeople about the improvement in the Iraqi justice system is true, then why did the Brits have to flatten a jail wall? Isn't there, like, an appeals process? And if Iraqis are being routinely arrested and detained at checkpoints all across the country, aren't the optics of this whole incident exceptionally poor?

Finally, why is this story already slipping off the media's radar?